


Life is the art of choice

by Maria1980



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: F/M, Intimacy, Jealousy, Love, Marriage Proposal
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2020-11-29
Packaged: 2021-03-07 18:55:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 32,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26932477
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maria1980/pseuds/Maria1980
Summary: Long story short-Elsie and Charles are circling around the subject of being together, but they haven't estabilished anything concrete yet. When Elsie is almost sure, that Charles will propose, he starts to back down and then, Joe Burns appears. Elsie has to choose with who she wants to spent her life with. This story will most definitely have more than one chapter. Hope you will like it.Legal note: Don't own any of the Downton characters, just like to give them fantastic adventures from time to time.
Relationships: Charles Carson/Elsie Hughes
Comments: 14
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

It's been a long time since Elsie felt so frustrated as she was now. Normally, she was the most optimistic woman among the Downton staff, if not the whole Downton household. Always ready to cheer everyone up and make all the people around her happy. However, recently she felt like all her optimism and her enthusiasm were forgotten. 

Those past few weeks were like a roller-coster ride. Up and down, up and down. There were days when she was so incredibly happy and so hopeful, that she went to bed feeling like her heart was singing from joy, but on the next day, something hurtful has happened and she went to sleep, with tears in her eyes, wondering why on earth did she dare to have any dreams in her life. Dreams about feeling happy, dreams about having somebody she loved by her side, dreams of being loved and protected woman.

The cause of this emotional swing was always the same- Charles Carson.

Their relationship-if she could even call it that way, has entered a new faze recently. Things that were unthinkable before, were now happening on a daily basis.  
It all started one day, after a sleepless night, one of many, that Elsie used to have, ever since the day of her 45 birthday. She normally never thought about her age, about passing years, about regrets in her life, but starting from the day of her birthday, she started to analyze, how her life looked like so far and what she would like to change or enhanced. Of course, there were some things which she already missed, like having a baby for example. This time has passed and it will never go back. She just erased this subject from her mind, trying not to contemplate too much about it. She told herself that she should distinct the things that cannot be changed, from the ones that were still amenadable.

The question of having children was a closed one, so she pushed it to the corner of her mind. But there were other questions. Like a question of her career-she knew that in this sphere everything was just as it should be. She might not have been a mother, but she definitely gained a professional success. A modest farmer's daughter from Argyll, has managed to become a housekeeper of the one of the greatest houses in England. All that she accomplished so far, was a result of her hard work-everyday, from dawn till dusk. She knew that if she was to retire tomorrow (hypotetically), she would have no regrets in that sphere of life. There wasn't pretty much anything else that she could achieve. Her parents would be so proud of her, if they could see her now.

The job that she had, gave her a solid, financial background, a respect of people, a roof over her head, many new, interesting experiences, broadening her mind and a lot of good friends. Most of all, the job that she had, has also brought a man into her life, that was now a number one in her heart-Charles Carson. Ever since the first day that she came to Downton and saw this tall, handsome man, with his deep, making her shiver baritone voice, she knew that he was the one. That either it will be him or nobody else. She didn't know him, she had no idea what was he like, but her first glimpse of him, made her heart inevitably belong to him.

Pretty soon, she got to now him very well and they had an amazing and fantastic connection, right from the start. They loved to talk, to spent time together, to discuss everything-life, books, politics, world events, their co-workers, the incidents in the household. Neither of them never had enough of talking. Their professional cooperation was always ideal, they understood themselves like they were one mind. They constantly watched each other and they were always taking into consideration the ideas of the other.

Naturally, there was never an option that there might be something more between them. When Elsie came into the house, England was still buried deeply in the Victorian age and the question of morality was an important one. There was not a possiblity, that the servants could have a relationship or let alone to get married. Even though both of them wanted it very much. Elsie knew, that and she was sure of that. In spite of the fact that they've never really talked about it. She sensed that Charles was in love with her, as much as she was in love with him.

He was more reserved than she was, so it was difficult to read something from his face, but Elsie knew. She saw how he looked at her. No other man in her life has ever looked at her that way..She noticed how he stared at her, when he thought that she was not watching. She saw how flustered he was, when she stood nearer to him than usual. How he lost his usual composure. 

Sometimes, when they were drinking their evening Sherry and talking, while everyone else had gone to bed, she sensed that he was very close to saying those words, that she so wanted to hear. But always, in the key moment, he backed down.

After she summed up her life, few months ago, after her birthday and she decided that there is definitely one thing that she wants to change in her life and that was her marital status, she figured, that she was the one who had to push Charles Carson in the right direction.Or otherwise she will never wait for any declaration from his side. She knew him so well. He was conservative. He didn't like changes. He thought that this situation will last forever. That she will always be around him, as his faithful friend, caring about him, that those moments during an evening Sherry will be enough for her. 

However this was not the case. Elsie wanted more. She wanted a declaration of his feelings. She wanted his proposal. She wanted to move on with her life, even if it meant that she will have to give up her job-she realized that the idea of a marriage between the butler and the housekeeper, could be difficult to accept for the upstairs people. Times have changed and they heard from time to time, that butlers were getting married now and still carried on with their jobs. But of course, it was always easier for men to live in this world. There were double standards. If they could cope with an idea of a married butler, she was not sure, that they could live with an idea of a married housekeeper. She didn't mind though....She would give up her job for Charles, actually she would have given up everything for him, if he just wanted to make them both happy. 

How much would have changed? They would no longer live in the Abbey-that was something to get use to, but other than that, she would have taken care of him with the same doze of love as she did now. For many years. He sometimes didn't even realize, how very well taken care of he was. Elsie, besides doing all her duties perfectly, has never neglected her favorite duty-taking care of him. No matter how much work she had or how tired she was, she always remembered to bring him tea and biscuts during afternoon tea, to butter his toast during the breakfast or to watch, that he wouldn't work too much and had some proper rest. 

That was one thing in her life that she was absolutely sure of-that she wants to spent her life with him, making sure that he was happy. If only he wasn't so stuck in his ways and could see what's important in life. If he could only figured out, that his future was not serving the Crawleys, but living with Elsie in an atmosphere of love and safety.  
From the day that she intensified her efforts, which meant to convience him, that they were perfect for each other, she felt a bit frustrated or sometimes even extremely frustrated...

Whenever they were taking five steps ahead, on the next day, he was taking three steps back...  
When they had a lovely evening together and his soppy eyes told her, that he was on the brink of asking her to marry him, he backed down and on the next day, he behaved in a stuffy and distant way, which almost brought her to the point of tears.

Time has passed and Elsie was slowly losing hope for a happy life with her pompous, old fool..There were days when she felt so frustrated, that she began to wonder, if she should not leave and start a new life, somewhere else...Without that tiring state of suspension...When she went to bed, she decided that on the next day, she will tell everyone that she is leaving to lead a new life and then another day began and when she went downstairs and she saw him in the servants hall, her heart told her, that it was impossible to live without him and that she was ready to take any suspension and uncertainity, as long as he was living under the same roof that she was...


	2. Life is the art of choice-2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear people. As I promised yesterday, I'm back with the update. Thank you for your comments, private messages and to all the people who followed my story after the first chapter. You are giving me a lot of credit and I will try not to let you down. In this chapter, Elsie and Charlie will have few too many drinks in the evening and Charles will be very close to making a declaration. Will he do it? Let's find out...

Things have progressed recently. Elsie was really happy about the direction into which their relations were heading. Their evening talks became more and more intimate....They were not sitting far away from each other any more, like before, but very close, on the sofa and yesterday, when she was telling him about the difficult experiences from her childhood, he even put his hand on hers and stroke her gently.. 

That was the first physical contact which they had. She was so amazed when he did that, that she began to lose the motiv of her story, when she felt his big hand on hers...The way he touched her, so delicately, made her shiver...She rose her eyes to look at him, but he wasn't looking at her...His eyes were focused on her hand, on the way he was touching her. When he felt her eyes on him, he looked at her and she saw the softness in his eyes, the kind of softness, which he normally never revealed... 

Her body was floded with hot flushes...She wanted him to continue, to go furhter with this, but he backed down...  
Elsie was very disappointed, but she promised herself, that tonight, she will lead to the situation of their closeness again....Whatever it takes, she knew, that she wants to take it on another level. Once Charles will see and understand what they have, what they could have, he will no longer be hesitant towards the question of their romance and marriage. At least that was what she hoped it will be...

To be sure that her plan will work, she prepared very carefully to this evening. She asked Mrs Patmore to prepare a tray of sweets, because she knew how much of a sweet tooth Charles was. She made sure that his favorite wine-Margaux, was there and quite a lot of Sherry. She was waiting patiently for the moment, when all the Downton staff would go away for the night. The last thing that she would need tonight, would be any unecessary interruptions....

She was happy, when she saw that everything worked exactly the way she planned it. Very soon, she and Charles were already sitting on the sofa, drinking wine, eating some treats from Mrs Patmore's tray and talking...Elsie thought, that it would be a good idea to return to her childhood memories again, since this was the subject that he found very interesting and that gave hope for her, for another intimate moment, like the one they had yesterday...She was not wrong...

When she started to tell him, how bad she and her sister were treated by her father, the stern man, who wasted no opportunity to teach his daughters obedience, using his belt frequently, tears appeared in the corner of her eyes..That wasn't a calculation from her side. She wasn't doing it to lure him...Those memories were simply to hard to bear for her and before she realized, tears were flowing down her face freely and he took her hand in his once more, because his heart clenched, when he saw her pain...

“Mrs Hughes...I'm so sorry that you had to go through this...It must have been awful for you and your sister....I can see how it hurt you..How it still hurts...Can I help you in any way? Do anything for you?...I will do anything to make you feel better...Please, just tell me what can I do...”

“Actually...There is something you can do for me right now....”

“Anything...You just name it....”

“Would you?....Would you hold me please? I really need this...”

Charles stiffened a bit, when he heard the request, echoes of propriety and a behavior which was adequate for the servants, sounded like an alarm in his brain, but his feelings for her were stronger than the rules...Without thinking about the consequences, he took her in his arms and held her tightly...  
Elsie couldn't believe that this was really happening...After all those years, after all the waiting...Finally, she was in the arms of her beloved man...She nestled her head into the crook of his neck and the he felt wetness of her cheeks on the side of his neck...

His arms tighten around her and she put her hand on his shoulder, making small circles....She never felt so relaxed, so calm, so safe....She thought, that she would never want to leave his arms...To stay like this forever with him..The warmth of his body, caused a feeling of endless delight... She closed her eyes and listened to the steady beating of his heart...They haven't said a word...Words were unecessary in this beautiful moment....Elsie couldn't tell how long they were sitting like this, but she noticed that neither of them were eager to break this contact...  
She figured, that maybe it was the right time to move forward...She cautiously raised her head, to look him in the eyes and what she saw there, told her everything...He loved her..There was no doubt about that...He loved her and she saw that in his eyes...She knew that he saw the same in her eyes...Without any furhter hesitation, she neared her face to his and her lips landed on his...Their first kiss was shy at first, but gradually it became more and more ardent...After a while, they caressed their lips with a passionate movements...

Elsie was totally overwhelmed with emotions, with her love and passion for him...She never wanted this to stop...When they parted for breathe, she was determined to not loose this precious moment and she surprised herself, with her own boldness, when she put her lips on his neck and started to treat him with small kisses, nibbling his soft and scented with a nice cologne skin...

Charles felt like he started to loose control too...No woman in the world, has ever made him feel that way before, no woman in the world has ever showed him such love and passion...She made him forget all the world, forget who he was and where he was...He felt a need of letting her know, how she effected him by doing what she was doing:

“Mrs Hughes....Elsie....Do you know what you are doing to me?.....”

“Yes Charles...-She whispered..”I'm loving you, the way you should be loved...”

“Oh, my darling....I love you...”

“And I love you...”

They've kissed and kissed again....They couldn't bring themselves to stop...Time ceased to exist for those two...There was nothing else, but them and their love...Elsie didn't want to break this moment between them, but she knew that they should go to sleep...If someone from the staff would get up right now and saw them here....

Charles reluctantly broke away from her and they left her sitting room together, walking side by side, in the dark corridor of the servants hall..When they reached the stairs, Charles suddenly drew her close again and gave her the last sweet kiss goodnight...She caressed his hair and his cheek gently, looking at him with a great doze of love and the words he said to her, almost made her fell down the stairs...

“Mrs Hugh..Elsie...It's late tonight, but tomorrow, I would like to talk to you about something very important...Do you agree?...”

“Yes Mr Car...Charles....I agree...We will talk tomorrow....Goodnight my love...”

“Goodnight my sweetheart...”

He squeezed her hand reassuringly, as if he wanted to let her know that a new, wonderful chapter of their life was about to begin and she believed him....  
When they parted to go to their rooms, Elsie lied on her bed, unable to sleep, filled with joy and happiness...So, her dreams will finally come true...No doubt Charles will ask her to marry him tomorrow...It will take some adjustments in her life, but it didn't matter. She didn't want to think about it now...

The most important thing was, that they will be together...That she will spent next years of her life caring about him and loving him and...Elsie blushed, for the very thought of what else they will be doing together, when they will get married..Those few passionate moments, that they spent tonight, stimulated some of her wildest dreams, that she normally didn't allow herself to have...  
When she finally dozed off to sleep, she saw an image his face, full of love, looking at her...

The next day

Elsie was rather surprised, when she didn't find Charles during the brekfast next morning, but she figured that he probably had some important, last minute duties, that he wanted to fullfill, before the day of proper work will start...She decided to get him a coffee and some toasts to his pantry.  
She knocked and entered, to find him sitting by his desk, buried in his papers...Her face brightened immediately, on the very first sight of him..

“Good morning Charles...I brought you coffee and few toasts..Since you didn't eat your breakfast...”

“Thank you very much Mrs Hughes..I really appreciate it..”

“Mrs Hughes? Yesterday I was Elsie and today I'm Mrs Hughes? What happened since last night?”

“Hmmm...About last night....I think we need to talk...”

“Yes. That was the plan. We were suppose to talk...”

Charles neared the door and closed them..She look at him bewildered, sensing that something was wrong...

“I feel that I ought to explain something to you...You see..Last night, we both drank too much and that unfortunately caused a change in our behavior and our night meeting went in a very inappropriate direction...I blame myself for this...We said and done things which are not suitable for the heads of the staff, in the house like Downton Abbey..We forgot rules and propriety, which we are suppose to follow. I'm very sorry for that Mrs Hughes. I hope that you will be able to forgive me my bad behavior and that you will be kind enough to forget that last night has happened...”

“What...? What are you saying? You want to tell me that last night was a mistake to you? That you didn't mean what you said and did?...”

“Yes. That is exactly what I'm trying to say...”

“But Charles..I don't understand it...How is that possible? Charles!...”

There was so much pain in her voice, that almost cut his heart in half and he wanted to tell her that this was not true, that he really didn't mean it...But he couldn't..Instead, he did what he always did in this kind of situation...He let his pompous and stuffy nature of his, won with the love that he had for Elsie...

“I think that I have made my point rather clear Mrs Hughes...I'm sure that you understand...One more thing-I expect us to go back to addressing each other properly, like we did before, especially in the presence of others...I would be grateful, if you would call me Mr Carson, like you did till now and I will call you Mrs Hughes. I think that's all that I wanted to say. We should get back to our duties.”

“Very well Mr Carson. I understand. Yes, we should get back to our duties now..”

Elsie left his pantry and she went towards her sitting room, like a lunatic..She wasn't sure where she was going. She just knew one thing-that she has to stay alone, immediately, otherwise she won't be able to take it...

She went inside her sitting room, closed the door, leaned agains the door and she started to sob uncontrolably....She couldn't believe what he just did to her...Not only did he destroyed everything what they had last night, not only did he denied his love for her, but he also hurt her like never before...Made a fool of her...Of her dreams, her hopes for the future.... 

She was crazy enough to think that he will ask her to marry him and instead, he rejected her and asked her to go back to the formality of their contacts...She went to the window, on shaky legs and she cried, letting all the pain outside...She felt like an idiot...Not only did she open her heart and literally thrown herself on him, but also she believed that they have a future together...Now, she will have to live here, in a constant feeling of shame, knowing that the man she loved and desired, doesn't love her back and he is probably disgusted with her actions..

She thought that there was only one possible solution at the moment...To move away from Downton...And forget that she has ever lived here...Erase that long period of her life from her mind...It was either that, or she will be forced to spent the rest of her live, working side by side, with a man, that was the whole world for her, while she meant nothing to him...She put her hands on the window sill, trying to go back to balance, when she heard knocking to her door.   
Frightened by the fact that someone may discover the state she was in, she swiftly wiped of her tears and she said: “Come in”, with the most normal voice, that she has managed to get out of herself.

“Mrs Hughes, there is a letter for you from the morning post.”-Anna said.

Elsie never turned around, she didn't want Anna to know what kind of state she was in...

“Thank you Anna. Please just put it on my desk. Will that be all?”- the tone in her voice, made Anna realize, that there was not a proper time for a casual conversation that they usually had.

“Yes Mrs Hughes, That is all. I will go back to my duties now.”

Anna left, leaving Elsie all alone with her sorrow and despair...At first, she didn't even think about opening the letter..She had more important things in her mind, then some letter, but when the first shock has gone, she slowly approached the desk and she opened it. It was a short note, but after reading it her heart skipped a bit. It said:

Dear Elsie,

“I'm planning to visit Downton Abbey next week, to participate in your local fair. I will be staying in the pub inn for few days. I'm sincerely hoping that you will find some time to meet with me and reminisce the good, old days that we used to have in Scotland. I will be waiting impatiently for your answer.”

Joe Burns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today's chapter...I know...Charles acted like a pig...Normally, in my stories, I always make him nicer, than he really is, but this is closer to his real character...Of course, he had his reasons and I will try to explain his point of view in the next chapter..Also, Elsie will meet Joe Burns...How will it all go? If you wish to know, you are more than welcome to read the third chapter....As always, sorry for any possible errors...Stay safe and see you soon!


	3. Life is the art of choice-3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello my dear friends. Nice to be with you again. I missed writing whole week, so I'm back today to write another chapter. In this one, I will present Charles's point of view regarding this harsh situation....Also, Elsie will meet Joe Burns and that will lead to another complications... I hope you will like it....

A week and a half has passed, ever since that memorable evening in Elsie's sitting room and Charles still felt like he was living in the middle of somebody else's nightmare...They didn't say a word to each other since that day, besides the casual and necessary conversationsd regarding the household matters. That was the only time when they couldn't avoid each other. Earlier on, they willingly spoke about family matters, changing one short question into long conversations. Now, Charles felt like it was a military talk-short, concrete, without any prolonging of the subject. Ever since that evening, Elsie never looked him in the eyes. Not even once. She never looked at him at all now. Earlier, he sometimes caught her staring at him, when she thought he didn't see that. It always nicely tickled his man ego, although he was not a vain man...Now, she acted like he didn't exist at all. Like he was just a part of Downton accessories. Even during meals, she always spoke with someone else, never with him. After the dinner, she went straight upstairs to her bedroom, not even saying goodnight.

Charles saw and felt her enormous pain...He knew that she suffered, he knew how much...Even though, she never said a word. The reason he knew how much she was suffering, was that he was suffering as much as she was or even more....When he went to bed a t night, he was tortured, every time he reminded himself that scene, the way he spoke to her-so coldly, so cruelly.. He thought that this was the only way for them to both forget their plans...He changed his mind overnight, when he realized, that it would probably be impossible for them to get together. 

Lord Grantham might have been tolerant at times, but Charles thought, that he would not be comfortable with such a modern idea, as a married butler...Even if Elsie would resign from her job...Because he was sure, that it would not be possible that she could stay on her position. He earned enough to provide for both of them, but that wasn't a problem...Charles didn't want to admit, even to himself, but he was afraid that it might have caused him his job...He might have lost everything he worked so hard for. He wasn't a crazy twenty something boy. He was a middle age man, who earned the position he held, with a very hard work. Ever since the day he came into this house, to start as a young footman, gradually, day by day, he was leaning towards a higher position and he got it. Could he really thrown that away and start somewhere else? Charles couldn't imagine working in a shop or a factory...

He was amazed when Elsie asked him once, if he wished going another way-to work in a shop or a factory and have wife and children...He understood now, what was the purpose of that question then...She wanted to inquire, whether he would be willing to give everything up for her...It turns out he wasn't...He felt ashamed, when he realized that, because he loved Elsie with all his heart. If someone has ever asked him, about his ideal of a wife, he would have no doubts about that. He would have pointed Elsie, because in his eyes she was perfect in every way...Beautiful, smart, intelligent, funny, sometimes even witty, but in a harmless way...She managed to run the great house without any bloopers...What more could he want from a potential wife? He sometimes had that sweet image in his head-that he comes back to the cottage, after a hard day of work and he sees her, serving him a delicious dinner and a great wine...She knew exactly what he liked.. She would have taken care of him like nobody else could...He was sure of that...

There was another matter...After their meaningful meeting in her sitting room, he still wasn't able to forget what happened that night between them...On a very personal level...When he lied awake at night, he constantly reminded himself the touch of her little hand on his chest, while they kissed...He reminded himself how her sweet, soft lips felt on his..How it trembled from love and desire, that she felt then...How her eyes looked at him, with such trust and devotion...He writhed from embarrassment, realizing, how she must have felt, when she heard those cruel words from him the next day..How he humiliated her...Treating her like woman to have fun with, for one night...When she was dreaming about being his wife...He dreamt about that too...Especially imagining how sweet it would be to go further with showing her his love...

It was like a constant battle inside him...Between the fear of loosing the position that he held and loosing the love of a woman, who was so dear to him...His fear about his job won...Unfortunately..He acted that way, because he knew, that it was the only way to reject her...He sensed, that if he had told her about his fears, about his doubts, she would tried to persuade him, to go along with the idea of their marriage...After all, she was always the one who solved all the problems for everyone...  
He wondered, how it will be possible to go on like this...How will they be able to live like nothing happened. Few times, he wanted to discuss with her, to explain, but she was so cold and distant towards him, that he didn't have the guts to do that...And so day after day go by and he was still in a state of suspension...

When the first shock has gone and Elsie was able to think straight, she immediately decided, that she should have quit her job and go away..Far away, so she would never have to see Downton and Charles Carson again...When she read the note from Joe Burns, she thought that this has come in the right time...She suspected, knowing Joe, that he wants to propose to her again...He wrote some time ago, informing her, that he became a widower few years ago...Good, old Joe...He was crazy about her ever since they were young...And obviously this was still the case...Elsie never thought about him seriously. When she was young, she wanted to leave Argyll and see a different way of life and she didn't love Joe. God knows, that is she was in love with him, she would have married him back then and she would be a mother and maybe even grandmother by now...

She was going to inform Her Ladyship about her leaving, but when she received a note from Joe, she decided, that she should wait to meet with him...If he will propose, she was ready to accept him...Even though she didn't love him..She loved Charles, but Charles didn't want her...He despised her and probably thought of her as a fallen women, who forced herself on him...She still felt a great shame, when she reminded herself, how eager she was to show him her love and how he behaved later...

She was hoping for a day or two, that he will maybe try to talk to her, to explain something to her, she still couldn't believe, that he could have behaved in such cold and unfeeling way towards her...She thought that she knew him pretty well..But that was all her fault..She forced herself on him and he got carried away, by the moment and by the large amount of alcohol they had that night..Besides, the way she..She touched him and kissed him...Which man wouldn't go crazy, being seduced by a woman like that...But as the morning came, he realized, that he felt nothing for her...She didn't exist to him and she decided that until all her matters will resolve somehow, she must act the same way he did... Act aloof, pretending that he didn't exist...It was more difficult that she expected it to be, as every fiber of her body ached for him and wanted him, but whenever a sudden rush of feelings came into her heart, she immediately froze, reminding herself, that she didn't exist as a woman for Charles Carson....

Few days later...

Elsie felt rather nervous...In the day of the fair, she was constantly making sure that everything was all right and there will be no unpredicted problems, which would prevent her to have her night off...She drove Mrs Patmore crazy, asking her few times about the same things...They were both great friends and Elsie confied in her, telling her about her old beau and a possible reason of his visit...She didn't mention anything about her and Charles, but Mrs Patmore was not blind...She noticed those two dancing around each other for years and she wondered what has happened between them, that they suddenly behaved like they didn't exist for each other...She didn't ask Elsie about that, sensing that something must have gone very wrong with the butler, since Elsie was considering to take her old beau's proposal...She sighed deeply, thinking that Downton without Elsie, would be an awfully lonely place for her, but she couldn't do anything about it...If that will be Elsie's decision, she will have to accept it...

Charles felt uneasy too today....Elsie almost never took the day off and he he had a feeling that something was very wrong...Of course, considering the current situation, he couldn't have asked her about that.. Was she getting ready for some drastic step? When he passed her room, on the corridor, he noticed how she was getting ready to go out, trying a hat and he saw how Mrs Patmore helped her...The thought have stroke him-he has to ask Mrs Patmore what was that all about. As soon as Elsie left, he went into the kitchen, by the pretext of checking if everything was all right and ready for the dinner, when she confirmed, that indeed everything was ready, he innocently asked her:

“Mrs Patmore...Do you maybe know when Mrs Hughes is going to come back? I'm not sure at which hour I can lock the doors for the night...”

“I wouldn't expect her to go back quickly Mr Carson...You know she took the night off and since she is meeting her old friend, they will probably have some catching up to do..”

“Oh, really? Her female friemd came here especially from Scotland, just to meet her? How nice..”

“Isn't it? But that's not the whole truth Mr Carson...Her friend came to the fair and to meet with her and it's not a female friend, but a male friend...His name is Joe Burns and I believe that he is her old beau, so you never know how things can go...”

“I see. I will go to my pantry now, if anybody needed me”-Charles came to his room, as quickly as he could and closed the door. He sat in his chair, breathing heavily. So his worst assumptions became true...Elsie was meeting with a man...Her old beau...No doubt he will propose to her and she will quit her job and go back to Soctland and he will never see her again...He felt a sudden panic attack. This couldn't be true! She can't do that. She can't go away and leave him here all alone...Forever...She can and she will do that....He was the one who caused it, by rejecting her so harshly that night...There was nothing what kept her here any longer....She was never in love with Downton Abbey and the family like he was and he knew that there was absolutely nothing that kept her here...She will go and he will stay here, as an old, pompous fool, who rejected the woman who loved him, just because of the fear about his position....

He swiftly decided, that it couldn't be that way..That he must do something! That it was the last moment to make the decision...He already made that decision. He wanted Elsie...He wanted to marry her, he never wanted to let her go. He wanted her to be his wife, to live with him, to love him and to never part with him, until the day he dies. 

As soon as she will come back from the fair, he will ask her for a conversation and he will explain everything to her...He will talk to His Lordship tomorrow and he will ask for the permission to get marry. His Lordship was a good man, he will understand that the world has changed and things that were not possible few years ago, are now socially acceptable...Calmed down by the plan that he has thought of, he poured himself a glass of his favorite Margaux, once again reminiscing how they drank it on that adorable night...

Elsie was indeed having a good time with Joe Burns...Thye were talking, laughing, participating into different attractions of the local fair...As the evening went on, they decided to eat a dinner at the local inn, in which Joe has stayed...They were talking and catching up with the stories of their lives....

After a while, Joe has told her what was the real reason of his come back..He told her that he never stopped thinking about her and that he wanted her to marry him...That was exactly what she was expecting from him...Elsie was about to say yes, when she felt a sharp pain in her heart, with an image that appeared in her head suddenly, without warning-she saw Charles's face and his brown eyes, looking at her with such sadness, with so much love and her lips which were ready to give Joe a “yes” for his proposal, has turned into a different direction....She told him, that she has to think it over...That because of her career, the position that she had and the complete change of her lifestyle, that this marriage would bring, she has to think it through...

Joe was a little susprised, but he already knew that Elsie was a hard nut to crack..She was completely different and more unusual than other women that he knew...That was what has always attracted him in her so much...He told her, that it's not a problem, because he rented the room in the inn for few days...  
They were still sitting and talking, but after while, Elsie figured, that it wa high time for her to go back home, so they went outside the inn...

“I'm so glad that we finally met Elsie...It was difficult not to see you all those years..I was still wondering how you were doing...Were you...? Were you thinking about me sometimes too?”

“Yes Joe...Of corse I did...You are a significant part of my past Joe...”

“I hope that I will be a significant part of your future too Elsie...There is nothing in the world, that I would want more, than to be your husband and to take care of you...I know that you were afraid of the hard work in the farm, but it's different for me now...I have managed quite well..I'm not a Croesus, but I have workers..You wouldn't have to do much and I would take a good care of you..Believe me...”-He took her hand in his and he shyly put it into his lips and kissed it...

Elsie was amazed by this gesture and by his words...So here she was, standing with a man who was clearly in love with her, offering her to take care of her and she still wasn't able to get the image of Charles Carson from her head! That thought was infuriating!

“Joe...I believe you....”-Elsie wanted to break the tension a little between them...”Tell me, how do you find your room in the inn? I was always curious how do these rooms look. It's funny, that I live here so many years and I never had a chance of finding that out...”

“The room is really lovely...You have a chance to see it now...You can come up and I will show it to you..”

“Joe that wouldn't be appropriate...What would people think?”

“Come on Elsie! You were always a brave one, who didn't care about other people's opinions. Remember how you shocked everyone at Argyll by leaving to England? You gave them something to talk about for months! Of course, most of them were sure, that you will fail and they couldn't have been more wrong! We are not a pair of youngsters anymore...We will just go there for a minute and then I will walk you back to the Abbey. It's dark already.

“Well...I guess it's all right, if we will only come for a minute...”

Joe opened the door leading to the rooms, as the pub an the rooms were located in a seperate part of the building, and he let Elsie to go in first...He entered behind her and locked the door. He wasn't surprised, when he saw a woman standing on a pavement and looking at them. He thought, that she was probably waiting there for someone...What he wasn't aware of, is that was Miss O'Brien-Her Ladyship's maid from the Downton household, who was just passsing by, coming back home from the fair..She saw the whole scene and she was already glad about it...That would be a saucy story to tell in the house...She decided, that the first person who she should tell about that, was Mr Carson. He was the one who was in charge of the staff and he always had such a high opinion about Mrs Hughes...He will want to know that...

Back at the Abbey...

Charles was really concerned about Elsie...It was very late and she still wasn't back...He tried to calm down, but it was getting harder and harder to do that, as the time passed...He comforted himself, thinking, that she maybe with the others of the staff-few of them have also went to the fair.When he heard laughs and talks by the back door, he sighed with relief...They were finally back...Now, he will be able to talk to her...  
He watched as a youngsters group went inside and his face frowned, as soon as he realized, that Elsie was not among them. They were all very amused, they were laughing, bantering etc...When they saw him, they all said good night and went straight upstairs to their rooms..Charles sat at his desk again, wondering what to do next...When he heard the back door opening again..Now it was her for sure...She came back...To his disappointment, it was also not Elsie, but Miss O'Brien, who had the same sly smile on her face as usual...He didn't like this woman, but right now, she was the only one who could know something about Elsie. So he decided to ask her:

“Miss O'Brien...Was Mrs Hughes with you at the fair? I would like to lock the door and she is the only one who has not come back home yet...”

“No Mr Carson...Mrs Hughes was certainly not with us, but I wouldn't expect her to go back soon Mr Carson..Especially considering the circumstances...”

“What are you talking about? Did you see her?”

“Yes, I did. About ten minutes ago, I saw her standing with a gentelman friend outside the inn. They were so busy with each other, that they didn't even see me...He was making some sweet talk to her apparently and he kissed her hand and later...”

“What.... happened later?...”

“They both came inside the inn-the part of the inn, in which there are rooms to rent...I bid you good night Mr Carson...”

Sara O'Brien left, with a sign of triumph on her face..She has gotten even for tonight with Elsie Hughes, when she told her to serve all the three ladies...She didn't think of the shock on Mr Carson's face as anything more, than a reaction to Mrs Hughes inappropriate behavior...What she wasn't aware of, was that she just ripped his world apart.....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today...I am mean, I know....But I will update tomorrow, so you won't have to wait long, to find out what happened in Joe Burns's room and how will Charles react for the news, that he has just received ;-) I know that O'Brien was not at the fair, where Elsie met with Joe, but I figured, she was the best person to give such news. She was always gratuitously mean ;-) Sorry for any errors. I hope you liked that chapter, if so, you know the drill ;-) Stay safe and see you soon!


	4. Life is the art of choice-4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello all. Thank you very much for all your wonderful reviews yesterday. Each one of them is always precious to me....As you remember, yesterday, Miss O'Brien gave Charles a very bad news and she left him with a heavy burden, while Elsie was still with Joe in his inn room. Let's see how this complicated situation can be solved...

When Miss O'Brien went upstairs, leaving Charles all alone, with the terrible news, that she passed to him with such pleasure, he came back to his pantry and sat in his chair, feeling like he was about to collapse...He hid his face in his hands and his heart was beating so heavily in his chest, that he couldn't take it...He wanted to cry, he was in despair...So Elsie not only has met with her former beau, who doubtlessly proposed to her, but she also went into the room with him...

For a moment, he felt terribly disappointed with her actions...He has never thought of her as a woman with no standards, she has never given him a reason to think about her that way, even on this night, when they've shared some of their hot kisses and caresses, he was aware of the motive of her actions- she loved him and there was no doubt about it..Brave things that she did that night, were all signs of her love for him...That's why it was so difficult to understand now, why she was suddenly capable of doing something so improper for woman-to go to the room with the man, who was not her husband, in the middle of the night...He almost saw them, standing in the pale light of the moon, holding and kissing... 

A ferocious instincts woke up in him..He felt that he would be able to kill that man...Just because he reached for something, that belonged to him-Elsie...He might have known Elsie longer than Charles, but Charles was sure, that her heart belonged to him...  
He thought that he will go mad from his hurt feelings and his broken heart..He loved her so passionately and his sadness has quickly transferred into anger, as his tormented mind gave him the horrible images-Elsie being kissed, touched and caressed by that man, who he didn't know anything about, other than he was her former beau...

If she was in love with him in the past and he was in love with her-which was probably true, it was more than possible that they were...Charles paced his room in anxiety...He couldn't do anything about it..Elsie was not his property...He didn't have any rights to her, other than the right of love, that he felt for her, but she didn't know that..He pushed her away so cruelly..He was wondering, if his awful and unforgettable reaction, has drove Elsie to this point...She felt so devastated by his actions, that she decided to do some desperate step to forget him...

“Oh Elsie, Elsie...Where are you?...Elsie please come home...Please come back to me....”-he whispered those words, into an overwhelming silence of the night...Having a crazy hope, that she can hear him somehow...

Meanwhile at the inn....

Joe showed Elsie his room at the inn and she told him that the rooms were indeed very pretty. The accessories in the room were very modest, but nice to look at...They've talked for a while and when Elsie was about to ask him, to walk her home, Joe said something that took away her peace of mind...

“Elsie...Before we go..Before I will walk you back to the Abbey...There is one important issue that I need to discuss with you...”

“What is it Joe?”

“I made an offer to you today...I told you all about my life and everything, but I haven't mentioned the most important part...”

“Which is?...”

“The reason that I want to marry you...I know that you may think, that I'm asking you about it because I'm a widower now and I need somebody to run my house...Maybe that's partly true, but only partly...The fact is, that I love you and I want to take care of you...I have always loved you and I'm hoping that you will love me too...Please don't say anything...Just remember that, when you will consider my proposal...”

Before Elsie could answer to that rather surprising confession, Joe has approached her and he put his lips on hers, giving her a kiss...Very steady kiss...So different from the one that she has exchanged with Charles more than a week ago...She didn't feel anything when he kissed her...No rush of emotions, no heat, no warmth inside, no passion-nothing from those things, that she felt, when she was kissing Charles...In fact, when he kissed her, she felt like she has left her own body for a while and looked at this surreal situation from another person's point of view...Joe was getting warmed up and just as he was ready to go further with this, suddenly Elsie broke away from him, like the thunder struck her... She open her eyes wildly, thinking that she probably was getting insane, because she could swore, that she heard Charles's voice, asking her to go back home to him...She started to shake, like she had a fever and Joe noticed that and he felt pretty embarrassed, attributing her current state to his actions..

“Oh God Elsie, I'm sorry...I really didn't mean to scare you..I just...I was dreaming about kissing you for years...And this night...You look so beautiful, that I just couldn't resist...I know that you are not used to that...I'm sorry..I wasn't going to take an adventage of you in any way...I would never do that..”

“It's all right Joe...I'm not angry at you..I just need to..I need to go back home already...It's really late and I'm very tired...Can you please walk me to the Abbey?”

“Of course Elsie...I will walk you back safey to the Abbey door.”

They went towards the Abbey..Joe was trying very hard, that Elsie forgot what he has done and he was talking all the time, which she was happy about, because she felt very anxious...Not because of Joe's kiss, but because of some inner, bad feeling...She didn't know what it was, but she never doubt, that it had something to do with Charles...She sighed with relief, as they finally reached the back door of the Abbey and she said goodnight to Joe, as quickly as it was possible, promising to him, that she will contact him soon, giving him her answer... 

She watched, as he slowly disappeared into the darkness of the night and she entered the servants corridor quietly...She was relieved, when she saw that there was empty and quiet in there, although, that was easy to predict, considering that it was almost midnight. She was about to flash by the corridor and went to her attic bedroom, when she stiffened, seeing as the door of Charles's pantry are opening up...She held her breathe, when she realized, that he was still awake, waiting for her...Her thoughts were running crazy, but she figured, that she should behave distinctly and with dignity, as much dignity as it was possible, in those circumstances...

“Mr Carson...You have startled me a bit...I wasn't expecting anybody here at this hour...”

“I'm sure that you weren't...May I know, what took you so long? Everyone else has came back from the fair long time ago, but from what Miss O'Brien has told me, you had much more interesting matters than a country fair tonight...”

“Miss O'Brien? What did she have to say about my evening? I don't understand?”

“She saw you, when she was coming back to the Abbey..She saw you standing in the pavement, with a gentelman friend...She told me with a great detail, how he kissed your hand and how you have both entered into the inn room ...Together...”

“I see...As always she wasted no opportunity to meddle in someone else's affairs...”

“Affairs...I think that this term is quite suitable here Mrs Hughes...”

“What do you mean by that?!!”

“I mean, that if an unmarried woman is coming back home, in the middle of the night, spending an evening with a man, it can only mean one thing! What were you doing with this man Mrs Hughes?!!”-his anger was getting more and more strong...But so was hers...

“Mr Carson, what I am doing with a man, in the middle of the night, in my free time, is my own, private busineess! Certainly not yours! Who gave you the right to ask me about such things?!”

“You are so very wrong Mrs Hughes! I'm responsible for every member of this staff, including you! I am the head of this household and I have to watch what you are doing, even in your free time. You had no right to behave improperly and expose this house for gossips! I won't let you do it!”

“That's enough Mr Carson! I don't want to listen to that anymore! Do you even hear yourself?? Do you know what you are saying to me??? You are not a custodian of my morality and you have absolutely no rights to talk to me that way!! Do you understand?!! No rights at all!! I have spent a lovely evening with my dear, old friend, who respects me very much and whom I intened to marry soon and what we did during that meeting, is our own matter! Just for your information Mr Carson-this is only first of many nights, that I intend to spend with him and it is possible that on the next one, I will not be back before the dawn!”-Elsie was so furious, as never before in her life and she turned around, heading towards the stairs, in the servants hall, wanting to run away from him, as soon as possible...

Her steps were very rapid, but Charles's were faster...Before she has managed to realize, he overtook her and grabbed her in his arms, so tightly that she couldn't get away...He started to kiss her forcefully, with such an overwhelming passion, that she would have certainly fell to the floor, if he didn't hold her in such tight embrace...In the beginning, she was trying to pull away from him, but he never gave her a chance to do that...When they were both out of breath and he stopped the kiss for a moment, she looked like a mess..Her hair were tousled, her cheeks were pink and her lips swollen, from his almost violent kisses...He still held her tightly and she was the one who spoke first:

“Let me go! You have no right!...”

“I have every right! Every right in the world, because I love you! I love you so much, as I've never loved anyone before in my life! Don't you see it, don't you get it?!!! You are mine and only mine!”

“You are lying! You don't love me! You rejected me two weeks ago and you ridiculed me and my feelings! How dare you to insult me now, just because you are behaving like a dog in the manger?!”

“That's not true! I love you! I always loved you and I will always love you...And you love me...I don't believe for a second, that you could...That you and this man could...Never! You belong to me...Elsie...”

Rest of his words has sunken into next kisses...He kissed her like crazy...Like he wanted to devour her, right here, in the middle of the night, in this dark corridor....The whole world has stopped and there was only her and nothing else existed for him...  
Elsie's body was on fire, she has now totally surrendered to his hot kisses...His sudden declaration of love, brought tears to her eyes and she never felt so out of control, like she was now...His lips left hers and moved to her face...He kissed her fervently...All of her face, her neck...And she was melting in his arms..Her knees trembled and she wanted him to never stop doing that...

“Charles...I love you...Of course I love you....It was always you..Nobody else..I could never do anything with Joe...You are the love of my life...I just felt so hurt by what you have done then...”

“I know Elsie..I'm so sorry..I never meant to hurt you..After that night..I felt so scared...So confused, so unsure about our future, about the reactions, that we may cause with our marriage....It's not a good explanation..I know...I was worrying about my job so much...You know how much it means to me...But tonight, when you were..When I thought that I lost you to another man...I understood, that no job in the world, is worth that...I will do whatever it takes...To marry you...I can leave Downton, if that will be His Lordship's wish..I don't care...I can loose this job, but I can't loose you...You are my world...You are the most precious thing that has happened in my life...I can't imagine spending a day without you...”

“Charles...My love...”-now, she was the one kissing his face, kissing his tears, which suddenly appeared...”I love you so much...I'm ready to give up everything for you...I don't care if I'm the housekeper or not...I want to be your wife...To take care of you for the rest of my life...I couldn't imagine my life without you either...”

“Elsie...”

“Charles...”

“Let's go back to my pantry...I want to hold you..I need to hold you now..”

She went after him and when they sat on the sofa, he took her in his arms and she nestled into him...She felt so warm and so loved....She knew that it was certain this time..That he won't back down..That no matter what, they will be together...She felt his lips on the crown of her hair..He was kissing her with such reverence...That she didn't feel before from anyone....

“Charles...What will we do? Do you have a plan for us?”

“I will speak with His Lordship tomorrow...We will just have to wait for his reaction...If he will let me or us, stay here, we will stay, if not..I will think of some other way for us...”

“But if he won't agree...Will you be able to live away from Downton? To start somewhere else? Will you be happy?”

“Of course I will be happy Elsie...I'll be with you..There is nothing more wonderful, that I could imagine...Downton is an important part of my life, I won't deny...But you are the most important...You are everything...”

“You are everything for me too....I thought that I will never live to this moment...”

“It's all my fault...I'm just a sad, old fool...I will talk to His Lordship tomorrow...”

“You are not a sad, old fool and even if you are..You are my sad, old fool now...I will have to speak to Joe...”

“Why on earth do you need to speak with him?!”

“He asked me to marry him tonight-remember? I said that I will think about it...”

“You were ready to..Marry him?”

“I was thinking about it, but...”

“But what?”

“When I was with him, I thought I heard your voice calling me, asking me to come back home...I know that it sounds crazy, but I could swore, that you called me and I came back home, to you...”

“Elsie, this is not crazy...I was calling you...I was standing here, in this room, asking you to come home, to me...”

“Charles...Do you realize what that means...How strong our love is?”

“I know darling...It is very strong...I never thought that you could love somebody the way I love you...”

They've kissed again, this time, with less passion, but with more tenderness...

“I will speak with Joe tomorrow, I hope he will understand...”

“If he won't, I will make sure that he does! You are my woman and that's how it always will be..You belong to me Elsie...”

Elsie smilled, hearing Charles being so possesive...She really liked that...

“And you my dearest belong to me, not to the Abbey...Just remember that tomorrow, when you will talk to His Lordship...”

“I certainly will!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today my dear ones...That was another long chapter...I don't know what is it with those two...When I start to write about them, I can't seem to stop...So Charles behaved like an a**ole, but what's new? I like feisty Elsie and the erruption of passion was worth it ;-)  
> Sorry for any errors...I have a request for you...Please tell me, if I should end this story here and leave them happy, with hopes for the future, or should I continue, writing another chapter about the family reactions for an engagement and Joe Burns reaction for a sudden rival, that appeared out of nowhere...I will let you decide...As always, the majority has the leading vote! Unlike in the US elections (sorry for that little joke) :D Stay safe and see you soon!


	5. Life is the art of choice-5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello all. Thank you very much for all the reviews and your encouragement for me to continue the story. You are all wishing this story to continue, so I will continue. My life is currently one, big mess, so I'm afraid that the updates won't happen often, but I will try the best I can... This chapter will include dialogues mostly....There are few things that need to be clarified...

Elsie was coming down to the breakfast next day. When she was walking across the servants corridor and passing Charles's room, he suddenly dragged her inside and closed the door behind her. Before she knew what was going on, he was already kissing her with a fervor of a young man...She nestled into him and she let him indulge her with his love...His lips caressed hers so slowly, like he wanted to take his time to taste her..

“Charles...I can't think of a better way to start a day...”

“Me neither my love...We should get use to that, because soon enough, everyone of our days will start like that..”

“I was afraid that you might have changed your mind over night and that you will tell me that you don't want to marry me anymore..”

“Elsie...I will never change my mind sweetheart...Nothing will make me change my mind...In fact, I just realized, that I haven't asked you properly...So I will do it now...Elsie May Hughes, will you give me the honor of becoming my wife?”- Charles kneeled down in front of amazed and extremely touched Elsie...

“Of course I will marry you my crazy, old fool. You may get up now!”

“How warming that sounds...I will speak to His Lordship after breakfast...”

“How do you think he will take it?”

“I'm not sure...You know his temper...He is a good, decent man and a fair employer, but his moods are sometimes unpredictable...”

“Charles..What if...If he will ask you to leave Downton? I have no delusions that he will ask me that and I'm fine with it..But what about you?...Will you be able to take it? To live outside this house?...I'm afraid that you...That you will hate me for that one day...”

“Elsie...I could never hate you...I know how I feel about Downton, but I also know, how I feel about you...I've never been so sure of anything so much...I want to spend my life with you...To be with you every day...Take care of you, love you...Work for you or with you, eat all my meals with you and fall asleep and wake in one bed with you...”

Mr Carson...Am I to understand, that this is all you want to do in bed with me? Just fall asleep and wake up...?”-Elsie asked this innocent question, looking at Charles seductively....

“Mrs Hughes...You are a wicked woman, you know that...I would never expect such an indecent question from a Lady...”

“Well maybe that's because I'm not a Lady..”

“You are a Lady to me and you always will be...”-Charles planted small kisses all over Elsie's face...”You have no idea how much I love you...”

“Probably as much as I love you...We have to go for breakfast now Charles...Everyone is waiting for us...”

“I wish we didn't have to do it...I would prefer to stay here with you...”

“So would I...My dearest, so would I...”

They've exchanged one more kiss and hurried to the breakfast. The atmosphere at breakfast was different than it usually was... Charles was very nervous about the talk he intended to have with the Lord and Elsie sensed that. All the other servants felt that too. Mr Carson, who was the essence of composure, acted very strangely today...Nobody knew the reason for that. Miss O'Brien was exchanging wickedly smiles with Thomas, because she thought, that Mr Carson was shocked by the news of Mrs Hughes night escapade with that man. She has already managed to tell Thomas all about it... But neither of them knew the real reason...If they did, they would have been very surprised...

After the breakfast, Charles went upstairs, to attend the breakfast and ask His Lordship for a talk and Elsie who went to her sitting room, to check the plan of chores for today and she got a surprised visit from her friend-Beryl Patmore...

“Can I take a moment of your time?”

“Of course. How can I help you Mrs Patmore?”

“You can help me by satysfying my curiosity about something...What's going on with you? Yesterday you went to meet your old beau at the fair. From what I've heard, you have not come back unitl midnight and today you and Mr Carson are locking in his pantry for a longer while. You have not said a word to him for days and suddenly this...He was so nervous during the breakfast...Can you please tell me what's going on with you two?”

“Well...I think that there is no need to hide the truth from you...Soon everyone will find the truth anyway...I received a marriage proposal, which I intend to accept and becaise of that, I will no longer work in the house...”

“Congratulations Mrs Hughes! So he did it! He proposed to you! I'm so happy for you, if that is what you really want!”

“Of course! That is something that I always wanted..Something that I've always dreamed of...”

“You have certainly managed to keep that desires well hidden all those years. I would have never guessed, that you were thinking about your old beau all this time...”

“Joe? To tell you the truth, I wasn't thinking about him that often in the recent years..”

“Well you are certainly thinking about him now...So when you are going to tell that to the family?”

“Mr Carson will talk to His Lordship after the brekafast.”

“Mr Carson? I don't understand..I know that he is our superior, but why is he talking to His Lordship about such personal matters of yours?”

“He is talking to His Lordship, because it is his personal mattter as well.”

“I don't get it...How does this concern him, other than that he will loose his favorite housekeeper?!”

“Mrs Patmore...Mr Carson will talk to His Lordship, because he is the future groom...He is the one who proposed to me and I accepted his proposal..”

“Mr Carson?! Prosposed to you? I thought that Joe Burns proposed to you.”

“He did..Last night..”

“So you got to proposals? Are you kidding me?!...”

“Yes. Joe proposed to me last night and I told him, that I will think about it and asked him for a few days and when I came back home, Mr Carson was waiting for me and he... He proposed to me as well...”

“Now, I'm so jealous of you! Nobody has ever proposed to me in my entire life and you got two candidates at one night!”

“Mrs Patmore...Don't be like that..I'm sure that one day you will find love and a candidate for a husband too...”

“Maybe I will, maybe I won't..Time will tell...So you've accepted our grumpy butler, instead of your old friend..Why is that?”

“Because I love him...I have always loved him and he loved me...”

“But...But you were not speaking recently..There was some bad blood between you..I saw that..”

“Yes...We had some misunderstanding, but that's all over now...We are both sure that we want to be married and live together...”

“How do yout think the family will take it?”

“I don't know...I'm sure that they will sack me...Nobody has ever heard about married housekeeper..I'm just hoping, that His Lordship won't make Charles go away...He would feel lonely without this house....” 

“I do not envy him of that conversation....”

“I'm sure he will manage..”

“Who would of thought? Elsie Hughes you are a dark horse...Two men in one time...”

“Sometimes that is how it happens...I didn't plan it...I have to refuse Joe...”

“How will he take it?”

“I'm afraid that not very well...He really wants to marry me, but...I love Charles...Only Charles...”

“Can I ask you something?...If you love Mr Carson, why did you agree to meet with Joe and why did you tell him, that you will think about his proposal, if you knew that you love Mr Carson?”

“Because I wasn't sure if Charles...You see..He was hesitating...He was afraid of loosing his job, that's why he wasn't sure if we should marry...And I couldn't live with that thought..I couldn't imagine living in this house, loving him and not being able to be with him...I was thinking of leaving, but when Charles told me yesterday...Nevermind what he told me..It's too private to tell it...I couldn't decide any other way...I knew, that I can only marry Charles, no one else...He is my whole life...”

“And you are his...I noticed how he looks at you..How he brightenes up when you enter the room, how he values your opinion, how he can't take his eyes off you..Even for a moment...”

Elsie blushed, hearing those words...Mrs Patmore was always very honest...Sometimes even too honest...But that was true...Charles loved her and she loved him and that was all that really mattered...

“It's nice of you to mention that...We love each other very much..I won't deny it and we will be together, whether the family likes it or not...Please don't repeat our conversation to anybody...I want this to stay private for the moment...”

Of course I won't...You can rely on me..I'm your friend...I wish you both all the happiness in the world...I'm still hoping, that the family will accept this...I don't want to loose either of you...”

“I wouldn't want to loose your friendship either...”

“Let's cross our fingers for good luck then and wait for the result..”

“Let's do that..”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today my friends...We still have a conversation with the family ahead and of course Elsie's talk to Joe Burns...So probably, the story will go on for few more chapters...I hope you don't mind...Sorry for any errors and if that chapter wasn't the best one, you need to forgive me...I'm recently in a bad place and my mind is a little off...Anyway, I hope you will like it a bit...Stay safe and see you soon!


	6. Life is the art of choice-6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone...I finally caught a free moment and I decided to give an update to the story. This chapter will be shorter than the others, but I really feel a great need of writing today. As you may remember, Charles has to go through a difficult conversation with His Lordship..Let's see how that will go...

Charles had a true test of patience that day...He was planning to speak with His Lordship, right after breakfast, but it was not possible, because the family has made a sudden decision to spent the day outside the house. They hurried through the breakfast and soon they were all gone...The hastiness, was a result of a message, that His Lordship received unexpectedly-that his old friend from the army- Chester Cunnings, who lived in the estate nearby, has paid a visit in his parents house and he was to go back to London in the afternoon. His Lordship told Carson, that they will be spending most of the day there and back somewhere around dinner time.  
As soon as they left, Charles hurried downstairs to tell Elsie about it. He was very nervous, he wanted to have this conversation behind him and that was now impossible. She soothed his anxieties, calmed him down with a kiss and they both went along with their daily routines. The family might have been away, but the duties were still to be done..

The day passed rather quickly and soon enough, Charles was serving them by the dinner table. They were all in good moods, as he noticed with relief. That gave him hope that the conversation with His Lordship will go well and when the Ladies went to the drawing room, to have their coffee and His Lordship went to the library, to have his evening drink, Carson followed him, commending William and Thomas to stay in the drawing room and take care of the ladies.  
When he already poured a drink, he noticed that he lost his usual composure...There was a difficult task ahead of him, but he knew that he had to do what needed to be done...He was grateful that the occasion arrived and that he was all alone in the room with His Lordship.

“My Lord, I was wondering if I might take a moment of your time...There is one important question that I would like to discuss with you..”

“Of course Carson. What can I do for you?”

“The thing is My Lord...I'm not sure how to start the subject...”

“I believe that the best way would be to do it from the beginning”

“My Lord...There are some changes in my life that you ought to know about..”

“Sounds rather serious Carson...I just hope that you are not planning to leave me and Downton. I'm not sure that I would be able to handle the estate without your assistance. You are the glue that holds everything together..”

“Thank you very much for those words...I'm not planning on leaving my Lord...It's more of the question of my personal life...”

“Oh golly Carson! Did you got yourself into trouble? Have you seduced some beautiful girl from the village and she is now in hot water?”- His Lordship laughed at his own joke and Charles felt more comfortable..Obviously his mood was a good one, to receive the news, that he was about to give him...

“No My Lord...That's not a thing...You know me...I'm not a type of a man, who would get women into trouble...Although this matter concerns a woman, a woman that I intend to marry soon. I would like to know your opinion regarding this question...”

“To marry a woman? Are you mad Carson?! Have you ever heard about a married butler? Because I haven't and I live on this world long enough, to see things that I'm not fond of, but this! How can you even ask me that? What's gotten into you?”

“My Lord..Please let me explain...There is a woman that I love dearly, in fact I have for a very long time and we would like to...”

“In love? For a long time? Do you want to tell me, that this is going on for a while? That you were taking part in those shenanigans? This is not a kind of behavior that I would expect from you! You know that you are a butler in one of the finest houses of our country. You don't have a personal life and you shouldn't have! That's how it always was and that's how it should be!”

“My Lord..I know that it may sound strange, coming from me, but the world is changing now...Whether we like it or not...Things that were unthinkable few years ago, are now becoming normal...My tremendous feeling for this lady is...”

“Crikey Carson! I can see that some clever woman has made a mess in your head! So much mess, that you are willing to ruin your life! Who is she? Tell me, because I'm curious, what kind of a devil has possessed you!”

“Actually My Lord, you know this woman and you know her very well...It's Mrs Hughes”

“Mrs Hughes?!! Our housekeeper-Mrs Hughes?! I don't believe that! What is that? How dare you come here with such revelations? Am I to understand, that you were both living in some kind of indecent relation under my roof?! Who do you think you are?!”

“My Lord we have not had any indecent relation. Mrs Hughes is a respectable woman and she would never..”

“A respectable woman Carson knows her place and she knows what it's right and what is wrong..Are you telling me that you are planning to marry?”

“Yes we are My Lord...We were hoping to get your permission to stay and still work for you, being married...”

“Permission not granted! You can both stay and still work for me, if you will forget about that ridiculous idea. If not, you must both go away from this house...What is your decision then Carson?”

Charles lower his head and looked in the carpet...His heart was beating wildly in his chest...So the worst has happened...He didn't expect it to go that wrong...He knew that His Lordship must have been disappointed with what he has heard, but he would not expected, that he will have to make such a difficult decision-to choose between the life that he lead so far and his love for Elsie... If he was a coward, he would have chosen to stay, to forget about the whole thing and go on, as nothing happened. But it was no longer possible...He could live without this house, but he couldn't live without Elsie...

“My Lord..I'm very sorry to say this, but I'm afraid, that I will not change my decision regarding marrying Mrs Hughes...If that means I will have to go from this house, so be it..”

“Well Carson, in that case-you can prepare yourself for leaving...Because you served the family for so long, I will behave properly and I won't force you to go away at once..I will give you and Mrs Hughes some time to find a place to live and a new job...As soon, as you will do it, you must leave the house...Both of you...Nobody has ever disappointed me as much as you did...That is all Carson. Good night.”

“Good night My Lord”

His Lordship left and Charles went downstairs, to his pantry, with a heavy heart...He heard noises from the servants hall, where the staff just had their dinner and he went to his pantry and locked the door behind him...He sit by his desk and buried his face in his hands...He made the decision, but he now fully realized, what that meant...He was to leave Downton, end his glorious career and never look back...He started to wonder, if it was not too high price to pay, but that kind of thoughts swiftly left him, as soon as Elsie walked into the room, closing the door behind her...  
One look at him and she didn't need to ask any questions...She already knew, that the sentence had been made...That they were to leave the house..Both of them...Charles's face told her that...She approached him and without asking anything, she wrapped her arms around him, drawing him near her...He put his arms around her waist and he put his head on her chest...She gently stroked his hair and placed few kisses onto it...She felt how he clung to her and how lost he felt....Just the very thought, that he did it for her, that he ruined all his life, he turned everything upside down, just to be with her...That caused a wave of tenderness in her heart and a feeling that she wants to show him, how grateful she was for what he has done...She took his face in her hands and placed sweet, loving kisses all over it...He closed his eyes and surrendered to her tender ministrations...Before he even realized it, she sat on his laps and started to kiss him on the lips...He reciprocated her kisses..Soft ones, soon transferred into passionate ones...   
There were no words needed at the moment...Everything was clear now...They knew they love each other very much and that they were ready to oppose the whole world, to show everyone how strong their love is..Elsie caressed Charles, she was running her hands down his body...Led by an impulse, she started to unbutton his shirt...

“Elsie”-Charles breathed...”We can't, we shouldn't...This isn't right...”

“This is so very right Charles....We waited long enough....I want this....I want you.....I love you...”

“I love you too....So much...I want you too....We are in this together....We will be together...I won't let anybody to destroy our happiness...Not His Lordship, not anyone...”

“I won't let it either....I don't care about Downton, rules or anything....”-Elsie felt a second wave of passion, going through her body and she captured Charles's lips, indulging him with her affection...Charles was mad with desire for her...Nothing mattered now...There were only they and nothing else...

“Elsie....If you..If we won't stop, I won't be able to remain a gentleman...”

“About time Charles!...You don't have to be one....”

“But Elsie.. We can't.. Here...Now...If we want to.. We have to find another place...”

“Yes Charles....There is a place when nobody ever goes and I have a spare key..Blue room...Now...”

TO BE CONTINUED...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all my friends...So...In the next one we will visit Blue Room ;-) Heck, it's going to be an interesting visit....Once again Robert behaved like an a...ole...He is not a bad guy, but his temper often influences his decisions....It looks like Charles and Elsie will have to find out how to live outside Downton...Sorry for any errors...There might be a lot more of them today, because I'm really tired...Hope you liked this chapter and you still are interested with the story...Stay safe and see you soon!


	7. Life is the art of choice-7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you may remember, in the last one, Elsie and Charles were asked to leave by Lord G and they are now caught up in the moment of passion, heading to the Blue Room...So, a small warning-this chaper will change it's ratings from T to M...Hope you will enjoy it...

They were kissing passionately, when suddenly Elsie took Charles's hand and she gently pulled him towards the corridor...He was unsure, a bit frightened, but when he saw the love and certainity on her face, he let her lead him safely to the Blue Room...

They were walking quietely throughout the sleeping Abbey, not disturbed by anyone, they got there in no time...Elsie opened the Room, which was hardly used, but always kept in perfect order, as were all the other rooms in the house, ever since she became the housekeeper in the Abbey...They both went in and Elsie closed the door very carefully and she turned the key inside, just to be sure...

It was dark in the room and they couldn't switch on the light, because someone might have noticed it..  
The room was the favorite one for Elsie...Every time she was in there, she always admired the subtle contrast between the pale blue color of the walls and the white furnitures...She was so happy, that she chose this room...Without any hesitation, she neared Charles and she looked him deeply in the eyes...She put her arms around his neck and he put his around her waist, keeping her steady, because in spite of the fact, that she was absolutely sure of her decision, she was trembling all over her body...

Their lips met again in loving and sensual kisses and Elsie's knees were faint now...Charles's kisses were now more passionate than before...Like he lost his usual self control...When they parted to catch a breath, she was trembling even more than before..From fear, from lust...From all the range of emotions that were coming through her body and mind...Charles noticed it and he felt a little uneasy...

“Elsie...Are you sure? Don't you think that we should wait until we marry? Should we do this in here...In the house?”

“Yes, yes and yes Charles...We are to leave the house, so will it make any difference? I am sure and we waited long enough...I don't want to wait another minute longer to be with you that way...I loved you for so long and I...I wanted you for so long...”-Her quiet voice has now changed into whisper and her last words made him shiver...

“Oh Elsie...I loved you too and wanted you...Can't even say for how long...Probably from the first time I met you....”

“In that case we have nothing to wonder about Charles...Come here...”-She pulled him towards the bed and they sat on it, starting to kiss again...Elsie was feeling wild and brave tonight...She promised herself, that she will do anything she could do, to let Charles know how much she wanted him..With a boldness that surprised herself, she reached to his shirt and she started to unbutton it slowly...While Charles's lips made their journey from her lips to her neck, cherishing it with pleasure, she was working to get him out of his clothes, at least the upper part of it, hoping that he won't find her too wanton...Up to this moment, she had nothing to worry about, because Charles was clearly delighted with her efforts and he repeated her actions, by trying to unhook her dress...  
They had to stop the kissing part for a while, to be able to go further with this..Elsie got out of her dress easily and she stayed in her enticing corset and stockings with garters, which set Charles's blood on fire, as soon as he saw it..  
He breathed heavily, seeing this beautiful body, that he fantasized about so often...He took his shirt, his vest and he was now half naked in front of Elsie...The woman that he adored...She sighed seeing this view and she ran her hands up and down through it...He was just as she imagined him to be...Strong, well build, a real man...A man who was waking a wild desires in her...

“Charles”-she purred...”My gorgeous, marvelous man...”

He moaned quietly, when she touched his bare chest and his hands who were resting calmly on her waist, went up, until he reached her breasts...He touched her so gently, with such reverence..Like he was touching the most precious treasure...That touch of his made her loose her senses...She wanted to be touched and she wanted to touch him...

Elsie got closer to Charles again and their lips started their crazy dance...In the heat of those passionate kisses, Elsie pulled Charles gently towards her, so that his body covered hers, as she calmly lied on the bed cushins...When he was lying fully on her, she groaned from the unexpected pleasure, that it gave her...It was the first time in her life, when she felt a weight of such solid man on her and it didn't bother her at all...On the contrary-she was enjoying it immensely...  
Charles's kisses transferred from her lips, to her neck once more..He was tasting her sweet, creamy skin...His hands were learning her curves, wanting to memorize every detail...When he touched her hips, she arched her body a bit...He looked at her and he couldn't help, but notice, how extremely beautiful she was, how stunning in her arising passion...Sudden, disturbing thought entered his mind and he had to ask her...

“Elsie...My love...Have you ever?..Before?...With anyone else...?”

Elsie smiled hearing the uncertainty in his voice. She was not insulted by that question at all...She understood, that he wanted to know, whether she belonged to anyone else besides him...

“No Charles...Never...With anyone...”

“Not even with Joe Burns?”

“Not even with him...You are the first man and the only one, that I ever wanted to...Make love with...”

“Elsie...I'm so glad...”-the relief in his voice was clearly audible...Now, that he knew that she was all his and that this passion was never meant for anyone else besides him, he was calm...He was also determined...To give her everything she deserved-love, passion and pleasure...  
He started to unhook her corset and she shivered again...She wanted this...Wanted him, but she was still a little frightened....

“Don't be afraid my love....I won't hurt you...I will try not to hurt you...We will take it easy..One step at the time...Do you agree?...”

Elsie nodded and didn't object further, when he slowly took off her corset...He was delighted, when he saw her full breasts...So beautiful, so enticing....Made to be touched and cherished...By him of course...  
He immediately leaned over one of them and took it into his mouth, sucking it gently, while he caressed the other one, teasing the nipple with his thumb......She closed her eyes, enjoying this unknown, but extremely pleasurable sensation...

His lips moved from one to the other, wanting to fairly distribute his caresses to both of them...Elsie ran her fingers into his hair and her mouth emitted those little, hardly audible sounds, that made him proud...  
When he reluctantly moved away from her breasts, he decided to remove the last piece of clothes, that she was wearing-her knickers, but she stopped him...If he was going to see all of her, she wanted to receive something in return...

“Charles..Will you...Will you take off your trousers? I want to see you...All of you...”

He felt hot flushes, when he heard her request...But didn't object at all...He slowly reached to the bottom part of his clothes and took all off..  
Now he was naked, naked as God made him and she could see all of him...All of the body, that she so much wanted to see for so long, including his full erection...  
Even if she was really trying, she couldn't take her eyes of THAT part of him...She thought, that he was very well equipped, although she had no point reference...  
She hesitated for a while, but the curiosity and desire won with a sense of embarrassment and she reached with her hand and touched him there...She closed her hand around it, marveling with the softness of his skin and he shut his eyes and moaned, when he felt her delicate touch...

He knew he couldn't wait any longer...He was so aroused, that few more of Elsie's touches and this will all be over, before it even begins..He took her hand off his manhood gently and kissed each one of her fingers, he looked deeply in her eyes, while he removed her kinickers...  
Elsie closed her eyes..Not wanting to know what his reaction will be when he sees her...But after a while, she opened it and she saw love and lust written all over his face...Slowly, not wanting to scare her, he touched her centre..That was not the first time, when he was touching a women, but his early sexual experiences, from the young years, had nothing in common with this situation..

Now, for the first time in his life, he was touching a woman, that he loved and that he wanted to please..This time it was not about a quick romp in the backstage..It was about giving delight to his beloved one...  
He caresssed her with circular motions, that special place of hers, he knew all about it, while his other finger went inside her...All the time he was observing her face...Not wanting to miss any sign of the pleasure or discomfort..To his liking, she was clearly enjoying it very much...  
As soon as she felt his slow motions on her special place...She was writhing on the bed restlessly and her parted mouth and closed eyes, alongside with her lustful moans, told him, that he was heading the right way...

Her body also gave him signs of moving in the right direction...The moisture that he felt between his fingers, indicated how very aroused she was...  
When her moans became louder and louder, he figured that it was the right moment...He withdraw his fingers, which met with a growl of disappointment of hers...   
He smiled hearing this sound and he kissed her reassuringly, parting her legs in the same time...  
Charles wanted this so much, but he had to be sure that she was ready:

“Elsie....Baby are you sure?...”

“Yes Charles...Yes...Please....”

He looked at her and he saw how impatience she was...He needed no further encouragement... Very slowly, cautiously, he entered her, meeting the obstacle...He watched her face intently, ready to withdraw, if she showed any signs of discomfort...In the initial moment, her face frowned a bit and she bit her lower lip...

“Elsie...Are you all right...Should I...Should I stop?..”

“No Charles..Don't stop...”

He waited for a while, to give her a chance to adjust to him, in the meantime, he was kissing her face delicately, wanting her to relax...When his lips landed on hers, his kisses were so sweet that she sighed deeply and he used that moment to start moving inside her...  
Within few moments, she regained her balance and she focused on what they were doing... He was moving inside her gently, enjoying every moment of it...It felt like heaven..To be so close to her, inside her...  
When Elsie passed this first awkward moment, with sharp pain, she was able to enjoy their closeness to the fullest...In fact she never wanted it to end...  
While Charles was touching her, moving within her, she saw that his passion overtook him completely...

“Oh Elsie...You are so wonderful...I love you...I love you so much...”

“Charles...My darling...I love you too...”

Elsie felt, like there was something amazing building inside her..Something new, unknown, but so very pleasant...She didn't have the time to think..It wasn't long, until she felt that this unfamiliar sensation, which started somewhere in her stomach, overwhelmed her completely, the same as before, she instinctively arched her body up and she lost a contact with reality, as she reached her first climax..

When Charles saw, how she moaned his name, how her body reacted, he finally let himself go too... Until now, he was waiting, wanting her to come first and when she did, nothing else was holding him back from following her steps...Forgetting all the world around him, he came with a roar and falled down the cushins, right next to Elsie...  
For a moment he felt so weak and spent, that he was not able to open his eyes...When he did, he saw that tears were running down her face and he was terrified...

“Elsie..Baby..What's wrong? Have I hurt you?”

“No Charles..No...I'm sorry, I'm just...I'm so incredibly happy..This was exactly how I wanted it to be between us...How I've imagined it...I love you so much...”

“Oh my sweetheart..I love you too...You got me so scared for a moment...”-He took her in his arms and he held her so tightly...She was nestling into him....He felt so touch by her reaction...

“This was the most beautiful moment of my life Charles...Will it always be that way..?”

“It will Elsie, I promise it will..”

“Charles...Do you regret that you have to go, that we both have to leave Downton..?”

“Elsie..Are you kidding? For you I would have left the Buckingham Palace...You are worth it...You are the most important..”

“Now that is something I would have not expected to hear from you...”

“We will be all right Elsie...I promise..I will take care of you..Even if I had to work all day, I will make sure that you have everything...We will rent a cottage and I will do my best to make you happy..”

“Charles...My dearest...”-she placed kisses all over his face...”I will work too..I'm not one of those women that are expecting to live off from their husband's salary..”

“It will all be your choice Elsie...You can work if you want to, but it's not necessary...I will find a job...I have savings, so we will make it for now...”

“But, won't you miss them? The family?”

“I will..But that is his Lordship decision and I can't change that...”

“He should have been more respectful towards you Charles...After so many years of service...But in a way I'm glad, although I know you won't be totally happy..Because when we will be away from the house, you won't be focused on the family all the time, but on me...”

“Elsie...I was always focused on you...”

“Well, you've managed to hide it pretty well...Charles...Oh Charles...I'm so happy..So incredibly happy...As I never was before...I just have to deal with Joe and we are ready to get married...”

“Deal with Joe? What do you mean?!”

“He asked me to marry him..Do you remember? I promised to gave him an answer...I will meet him tomorrow and talk to him...”

“I don't want you to go and meet him alone...I will come with you...”

“I'm not sure if that's a good idea Charles...He may feel uneasy...”

“Well, he will just have to live with that...I won't let my woman meet with any man, without me being present..”

So I'm your woman now Charles..?”-Elsie smiled, looking at Charles seductively...

“You have always been my woman Elsie...”

“And you have always been my man Charles...”

“Elsie...My most beautiful flower..Shouldn't we go back to our rooms now?”

“Not yet Charles...There are still few hours till the morning..Let's stay here...I want to be in your arms...

They've kissed and cuddled closely for the rest of the night....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for this chapter guys...Probably the 127 version of Chelsie's first night ;-) I'm not even sure where I get the constant inspiration from..Anyway...I hope you liked it a bit...If you did, please let me know.....In the next one, Elsie will talk to Joe and they will start to look for a place to live...Stay safe and see you soon!


	8. Life is the art of choice-8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone...Sorry for not updating yesterday, I was in the middle of my writing, when the happy news broke and I couldn't concentrate anymore, but today I' back to finish what I started.  
> As you probably remember, in the last one, Charles and Elsie spent their first night together in the Blue Room, but even the most pleasurable nights are over and they have to face the day challenges...Hope you will like this chapter...

Elsie was already downstairs in her sitting room, preparing herself for another day..She looked in the mirror, as she usually did in the morning and she smiled to her reflection...Because she saw a very happy woman in the mirror, woman who was loved and in love...She was wondering, if she will look a lot different today, after her first night with Charles, but besides the clear happiness written on her face, she looked pretty much the same...A brief moment of inattention and Beryl Patmore was already in her room, with a cheeky smile on her face:

“Good morning Mrs Hughes. How are you today?”

“Good morning Mrs Patmore. I'm fine, thank you..How are you?”

“Oh, pretty well, but not as well as you I suppose..”

“Whatever is that you mean by that?”

“I mean that your night must have been more interesting than mine...”

“Mrs Patmore will you kindly explain to me what are you suggesting...”

“Please don't be mad at me...I knocked at your door in the morning, to ask you something, but you weren't there..And then I heard your quiet footsteps in the corridor...Besides, that cheeky devil Thomas was laughing with O'Brien and I heard that he told her, he saw Mr Carson coming back from somewhere, early in the morning...I may not be the brightest person in the world, but I can match some facts...”

“Well you see..We..I mean, Mr Carson and I...”

“That's all right...You really don't need to explain anything to me, just tell me-did you spent the night with Mr Carson?”

“Yes, I did...I'm not going to lie to you...We spent this night together in the Blue Room..I hope you won't think of me as the fallen woman...”

“Mrs Hughes...I would never think that...You are one of the finest woman that I know...You love Mr Carson and he loves you, you are about to get marry soon...It's not my place to judge you...”

“Thank you for those kind words...They mean a lot to me...”

“But I have know..How was it?”

“Mrs Patmore! I ask you!”

“I was just kidding...Stay calm...I know how discret you are...Too bad..I was hoping to know some interesting details about Mr Carson...”

“You can dream about it! I won't tell anything...I have a favor to ask you...I will have to leave for about an hour, during lunch time..I have to meet Joe and tell him that I won't accept his offer...Would you be so kind to check if everything is all right in the house?”

“Of course I will. No problem with that..But are you going there alone? You think it is safe?”

“Why wouldn't it be? Joe is a kind, nice man..He will understand...”

“I'm not so sure about that...Men don't like when we hurt their pride...”

“I'm sure it will be fine..”

“Perhaps you should...You should go there with Mr Carson...”

“He suggested it, but I prefer to do this on my own...That's why I sent a message to Joe, asking him to meet me at lunch time...Charles will be busy then..I mean Mr Carson..”

“As you prefer...You are meeting with him in the pub?”

“No, we are meeting in the park, near the graveyard...”

“What an appropriate place to give someone a bad news!”

“It is...He will have to deal with it...Now, I must get on with my work..”

“Me too. I will make sure that everything will function properly while you are gone...”

Elsie smiled seeing her dear friend leaving...She wouldn't expect that she could take the news so easily..It was good to have a friend like that...  
During the brekfast Charles was happier and more relaxed, then he usually was and whenever his eyes met hers, a warm smile brightened up his face...Elsie was barely stopping herself from touching his hand or making some other gesture, which would indicate how much she loved him...

She noticed his sloppy eyes, but she also noticed the eye blinkings that Miss O'Brien and Thomas were exchanging every once in a while...She decided not to think about it too much and she went back to her duties, soon after the breakfast. The forenoon has passed rather quickly and when the lunch hour struck, she went to meet Joe, asking Mrs Patmore one more time, to havean eye on everything...  
Joe was already in the park and he was smiling from afar, when he saw her. Her heart clenched a bit, when she realized, how much she will hurt him today...She reciprocated the smile and neared Joe slowly..

“Good morning Elsie or should I say good afternoon.”

“Hello Joe. Nice to see you again.”

“You look lovely Elsie, but that's nothing new...I couldn't wait till we meet again..”

“Can we please go sit on the bench Joe? We need to talk..”

“Of course Elsie..Follow you...”

Elsie sat on the bench, smiling to Joe nervously...It was not easy to break this man's heart for the second time...She would rather avoid it, but that was not possible...

“Joe...The thing is that...I've been thinking about your proposal and I'm here with an answer, as I promised you...”

“I'm all ears Elsie..What is your answer?”

“I'm afraid that I have to refuse your offer Joe...I can't marry you...”

“No Elsie! No...Not this again...Why? What is the reason?? I was sure, that this time you will agree..”

“I was very close to agree to your offer Joe, but things have changed since our last meeting...Very much...I'm not a good liar, so I won't make up a non-existing reasons and I will just tell you the truth...I can't marry you, because I'm in love with somebody else and I intend to marry the man...”

“But..I don't understand Elsie....You fell in love with someone since our last meeting? How is it possible?”

“Joe...I should have been honest with you from the beginning. I didn't fall in love with somebody else...I was already in love when we met..This is my friend from the Abbey, who works with me. He is the butler. His name is Charles Carson. We know each other for twenty years now and I was always in love with him...But until few days ago, I didn't think, that he will propose to me...But yet he did and because of that, I can't accept your offer...”

“Let me get this straight Elsie....So you agreed to meet me and you agreed to think about my proposal, even though you were in love with another man?”

“I know it was a bad thing Joe...I'm really sorry...I don't want to break your heart, but this is a long story...You see...Few days ago, I was convinced, that Charles and I..Mr Carson that is, that we will never be together and now..I know we will..That doesn't justify my actions of course, but I was only trying..”

“You were only trying to leave yourself another option Elsie...Let's be honest...I was the second choice of yours...”

“I'm sorry Joe...I know that I acted awful, but...”

“And if he hadn't proposed to you, you would have accepted me and pretend that you were in love with me? Is that how would it look like?”

“I don't know Joe...That's a question that will remain unanswered forever...”

“But...Isn't this like forbidden for butlers and housekeepers to get marry? Won't you have to leave sevice?”

“Yes, we will have to leave service...Charles was trying to talk to His Lordship and convinced him to let us stay, as a married couple, but he said no...So we are to leave Downton and we have to find a house and a place to live...”

“You are ready to disrupt your whole life for that man??? To reject everything I have to offer to you- a nice cottage, a great deal of cash and calm life, within the people you grew up with? Who is this man Elsie? That you are ready to turn your world around for him?”

“Joe...He is the love of my life...He is the first man that I loved and the last one....”

“I see...So you never loved me...”

“Joe..Please don't make me say things that will hurt you...I want to be honest with you, but I know how that hurts you...”

“It does...I've loved you Elsie...Always...I only married Ivy, because you didn't want me and I was not strong enough to live a lonely life..But all those years, I thought about you, I've dreamed about you...Even though it was forbidden...And when Ivy died...Few days after her funeral, I was already making a plan to ask you to marry me...I so wanted to grow old with you...To live happily ever after...I know, it sounds like a fairy-tale, but this is how I saw it...Forgive me..”

“I have nothing to forgive you Joe....I'm the one who should be asking forgivness...I've behaved badly and I hope that you will be able to forget that...”

“It would mean to forget you and that is not possible Elsie....If you ever change your mind, you can always come to me...I will be waiting for you for the rest of my life...”-Joe took her hand in his and kissed it gently...In this touching moment, neither of them has noticed, that Charles was walking their way, with not a happy look on his face...Alarmed by Mrs Patmore, he decided to look for Elsie, as he didn't want her to be with that man-Joe Burns, even a minute longer than it was necessary...

“Charles! What are you doing here? I thought that you were serving lunch..”

“I came to look for you...You were suppose to wait for me Elsie...Mr Burns, can you please let go off my fiancee's hand?”

“Yes of course Mr Carson...We were just...”

“I know what I saw Mr Burns...There is no reason for your explanation...”

“Charles! Please...Behave yourself!”

“That's all right Elsie...Mr Carson has a right to be nervous...I know I would be, if you were my fiancee and I saw you in this situation with the other man..”

“But she is not your fiancee Mr Burns...She is my fiancee and please don't you ever forget it...”

“Believe me Mr Carson...I will never forget it...And please, let me just say to you-you are the luckiest man in the world...I wish you both a long and happy life...”-Joe reached his hand, to shake Charles's hand and he let go of Elsie's hand, which he was holding possesively...He shook Joe Burns's hand and Elsie stood next to them, watching in amazement as two, the most important men of her life, were shaking hands...

“Thank you very much...A wish you happiness too Mr Burns...Elsie, we should get back now, we are needed in the house...”

“I believe we are...Goodbye Joe...Thank you for everything...”

“Thank you Elsie...Goodbye..I hope you will be very happy.”

Joe left towards the inn and Charles offered Elsie's his hand, as they headed in opposing direction...When they were far enough, to be sure that Joe didn't hear them, Charles asked:

“What was he thanking you for Elsie...?”

“For a meeting, for a reminiscence of the good, old days Charles..There is no need for you to be jealous...”

There is every need Elsie...You belong to me..You know that, don't you? I will never let any other man take you away from me...”

“My silly, old, jealous fool..I love you, you know that?”-Elsie stopped in the middle of the road and she kissed him on the cheek...

“Elsie..I'm not sure if it's proper, we are...”

“I don't care Charles...I love you and I want the whole world to know that...”

“I love you too...”-Charles was pretending to have a severe face, but in reality, he was grinning from joy, hearing those beautiful words from his fiancee and future wife...

Later, in the evening...

Elsie was in her sitting room, waiting for Charles...He was summoned upstairs, by Lord Grantham and she was wondering, what that might be at such late hour...When he entered the room and she saw his face, she knew that something very wrong must have happened, as he was clearly devastated....

“Charles honey, what's the matter? What happened?”

“I...I just spoke to His Lordship..He told me, that he was informed, that you and me were doing some forbidden shenanigans in the middle of the night and because of that, he asks both of us, to leave as soon as possible, he has already found our replacement...”

“What a piece of...”

“Elsie! Please..Do not speak ill of...”

“All right..I will stay quiet...Oh my love...This must be awful for you..Come to me...”

Charles came closer to Elsie and she hugged him, pouring all her strenght and love in him....He was shaking from emotions and she was focused only on soothing him....

“I'm sorry Elsie....I shouldn't be so shaken...But this house....So many years of service...”

“Charles..I want you to listen to me carefully...We were both serving in this house for a long time. We were doing the best we could and nobody can say anything bad about our work...But it's over now... This life has ended for us...We will get marry, find a place to live and another job and we will go on with our lives...I'm with you..For better and for worse...Forever...We are in this together...”

“We are Elsie...I thank God for you....I wouldn't know what to do with my life without you...Thank you for your love...”

“I'm thanking you for your love Charles...If it wasn't for me, you could still live and serve in the Abbey...”

“Elsie...I wouldn't want it any other way...It is you that I care about..Only you...”

Elsie's eyes filled with tears, as she neared her lips to his and gave him the most tender kiss ever...She later placed her head on his chest and they stood in her sitting room, cuddling, frightened, but at the same time ready to start their new life...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today's chapter guys...A lot of talking..Not like in the last chapter ;-) I was wondering, if I should write a scene where Charles would punch Joe, but in the end, I decided to give this scene a peaceful ending...Since yesterday, I feel that the whole world is calmer and full of love and it is reflected in the chapter..I will say no more ;-) Hope you liked it a bit...Sorry for any errors...In the next one, they will start a preparations to their new life..  
> Please leave a review if you wish and stay safe! See you soon!


	9. Life is the art of choice-9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello my dear people. I'm happily returned with another chapter. Our love birds have to move on with their lives, because Lord Grantham asked them to leave Downton as soon as possible. How will they manage in this difficult situation? Let's find out...

Next day, in the early morning, Charles was full of energy or he was pretending to be that way, just to hide his true nervous emotions, that were hidden inside him...

“Elsie, I've been thinking about our situation for half of the night. I have a plan”-he said to Elsie, when they were in his pantry, after breakfast.

“And what is the plan?”

“Well, first of all, I plan to go to Ripon today and get a marriage license for us. We should marry as soon as possible. We won't be able to find a cottage to buy right away, so if Lord Grantham asks us to leave, we need a place to stay and I thought that we could stay in Mrs Sanders guest house. You know she is renting rooms, ever since she became a widow. We could live in her house, until we find a place to live of our own. What do you think about that?”

“I'm thinking it's a good plan, but do we have to get married so quickly? Can't we just live at her guest house without being married?”

“Elsie! Of course we can't..That wouldn't be proper!”

“Charles...”-Elsie couldn't help but smile...”I think in the recent days we already crossed the line of propriety..Don't you think so love?...”-Elsie neared Charles and she ran her fingers through his chest, smiling to him warmly...

“Elsie..That's different...That was something private, between us..Something beautiful...I don't want you to loose your good name in the eyes of people and that's how it would be if we lived there, together, unmarried..”

“I don't care about that...You really think it was beautiful?...”

“How can you even ask...? That was the most beautiful moment of my life...And the best part is, that this was just a beginning...From now on, our life will be filled with such beautiful moments...”

“Can't wait for that Charles...”-They've kissed gently and Elsie put her head on his shoulder, enjoying his closeness...

“But why are you so hesitant to get married Elsie? Did you change your mind about us?...”

“Of course I have not! It's just that...I...Promise you won't laugh when I tell you..”

“Cross my heart..”

“I always wanted a church wedding...I know that I'm not a young woman anymore and I shouldn't dream about wedding dress and all the other nonsense, but...I dream that we are together, in the church, dress beautifully and our friends are there with us, listening, as we promise to love each other till the end..Isn't that too silly?”

“It's not silly sweetheart...It's so beautiful...Of course that we will have a church wedding..Don't let anyone tell you, that you are too old for a wedding dress..You will look as pretty as you always are in the wedding dress...I just want us to get marry in the office now, so people won't condemn us for living together at Mrs Sanders...Because if we move in there, unmarried, we will have to live in a separate rooms...You wouldn't want that, would you?”

“Of course not! I would have to sneak into yours in the middle of the night..”

“My naughty woman...How I love you...”-Charles put his arms tightly around Elsie and he kissed her, with a fervor that she remembered from their first night together that they spent as lovers....

“Mmmm...Charles...We better stop now or I won't be able to get any work done...You know how you affect me?...”

“I suspect that pretty much the same as you effect me love and you are right...No time for that now...We have plenty of work to do...I will go to Ripon today...On my way back, I will talk to Mrs Sanders about renting a room”

“Won't His Lordship mind, that you will be gone for the most part of the day?”

“I don't think so...He told me yesterday, that finding a new place to live should be my priority now, so...”-Charles's arms went down and Elsie felt a pain in her heart, because she knew, how much this hurts him, even though he tried to pretend that everything was all right...”

“Charles...Please don't dwell on that now...We will be fine...I know it's hard to believe it for you, but there is life outside Downton Abbey..Our life..It's going to be as good as the one we had here, if not better...”

“I'm sure it will be better, because I no longer have to be separate with you...That's the most important thing for me right now...I'll be off now. Have to inform them, that I'm leaving to Ripon...”

“Have a great day Charlie...I will be waiting for you and the news impatiently...”

“Will I get a goodbye kiss?”

“You can get even two kisses...”

Elsie put his arms around Charles's neck and her lips touched his, with sweet, soothing motions...He felt, like she has given him strength to carry throughout a day... They parted reluctantly...

In the kitchen, later...

“I just can't believe, that he told Mr Carson, that you should leave as soon as possible..How could he do that?”

“Apparently he already found someone who will replace us...”

“Do you know who this is?”

“No. Charles didn't tell me anything about it. To tell you the truth, I don't care about that anymore...I think we should leave this house immediately...The lack of respect, that His Lordship showed to Charles...After so many years of faithful service...I'm telling you Mrs Patmore, there will come a day when he will regret it...I'm sure of that..”

“I believe you...He won't find other two people, so devoted to the service as you are...I can't imagine this house without you...It makes me sad.. But we won't loose touch?”

“We won't...We can still meet for coffee, when you have a day off and of course you will all be invited to our wedding at church, once we get to settle the date...”

“Are you happy Mrs Hughes? About this whole situation?”

“I've never been happier...We will be together and that's the most important thing for me...We will manage...I always wanted to be his wife, I think on some level from the first time I met him, I always wanted it...”

“Mr Carson also wanted to be your husband. You two are just made for each other...I know you will be very happy...I wish you all the happiness in the world...”

“I know you do...You are my true friend...”

“As you are mine..”

Tears appeared in the eyes of both women, when they realized, that the changes in Elsie and Charles's life also mean the end of an era...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today friends. I will update tomorrow and I can already tell you that Charles will come back from Ripon with some really good news. Several of them ;-) Sorry for any errors, I was trying to focus on writing but I got constantly distracted...Hopefully it will be better tomorrow. Thank you for all of you who are still reading, reviewing and liking the story... Stay safe and see you soon!


	10. Life is the art of choice-10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello all. This week, I have a little more of free time, so I'm here with the new update for you... I can't believe, that I'm already writing a tenth chapter, for the story, that I intended to write for at most three-four chapters...But hey, that's me ;-) I like to prolong Chelsie's adventures. As you probably recall, in the last chapter, Charles went to Ripon to manage some things and he is back with good news...How will Elsie react? Let's find out...

Charles was so eager to talk to Elsie, as soon as he got back from Ripon, but she was busy upstairs and he didn't have a chance to do that...Later it was dinner time and he had to serve the family upstairs and what he heard there from Lord Grantham, has outshined his joy...

When they finally got through the downstairs dinner and everyone went up, Charles sat in his room, hiding his face in his hands. He was really trying to get through this situation with dignity, not to look back and everything, but some comments of his employer, who he bestowed with a highest respect, almost made it impossible for him..Some of the things he said to Charles caused his pain...

Elsie found him in this state and she immediately realized, what might have been the cause of it. She entered his pantry, closed the door behind her and she sat by him, touching his cheek with affection...

“Charlie...What's the matter love? Why are you that sad? What has he said to you, that got you into this state?”

“Elsie...How do you know that it was something he said?”

“Because I know you better than anyone does...And whatever it was, you didn't deserve it..Come here honey..I want to hold you...”

Charles didn't protest at all, when Elsie wrapped her arms around him..He put his head on her chest and surrendered to her gestures of love completely...She was soothing his back, with calming motions and placed tiny kisses on his hair...He relaxed in her arms...It was like coming home, after a horrible meeting with your boss...Those brief, stolen moments of tenderness with Elsie, have fully rewarded him the harsh moments he had to go through right now..

“Oh Elsie...What would I do without you?...”

“You wouldn't have to go through this mess without me Charlie...Maybe it would be better for you...”

“How could it be better without you? Don't ever say things like that again...He told me, that he expects us to leave till the end of the week, because he already has people who will replace us, waiting for the job...Imagine Elsie...No thank you for your faithful service, no gratitude at all..Just a hastiness to get rid of us..”

“Shh...My love...Don't think about that no more...”-Elsie kissed Charles's forehead twice and she tightened her embrace...Wasn't there some good news that you were planning to give me too?”

“Yes there were...Fortunately....Even a few good news...I managed to get a licence and we can marry in two days, because someone has resigned in the last moment..I also went to see Mrs Sanders and I told her about our situation...She has booked her best room for us and she is ready to receive us, as soon as we will marry. I visited her on my way back, so I told her, that we are planning to marry this Thursday at noon. We can move in after the ceremony...She told me, that if we want to get some of our things earlier, there will be no problem...”

“So you mean that in two days, we will be a married couple?”

“Yes...Does that scare you sweetie?”

“Not in the least...On the contrary, I'm ever so glad, that we will finally leave this house, the house which showed us no signs of respect...”

“I guess you are right Elsie..No one is more sad about that fact, but you are right...But there is not the end of good news...There is more...”

“More? Really? What more good news could you get us today?”

“During our last conversation, you told me, how important it is for you to have a church wedding, with our friends being present...I promised myself, that I would do anything to make you happy and when I settled things with our weeding at Ripon and the question of our living accomodation at Mrs Sanders, I stepped into the vicarage to see Reverend Travis...”

“Did you really Charles? Oh, that makes me so happy...So we will have a church wedding? There is no greater present that you could give me...When it will be?”

“In two weeks..That was the first available term that he had...He was so surprised, when I told him about our marriage...Of course, I had to explain the whole situation to him, but he was very understanding...In fact, when he heard about it, he offered to us or to me, something more than just a wedding term..”

“What do you mean? I don't understand?”

“You see, the lucky turn of events is, that Rev Travis has just said goodbye to his house manager- Mr Gont. He retired after forty years of service and he is currently looking for someone, who would run the vicarage for him and apparently he is experiencing some problems with finding a right person, so when he found out that I'm out of the job, he asked me, if I would be happy to work for him..”

“Charles, that's marvellous! What a lucky turn of events! So you would be like a butler for him?”

“Not exactly the butler Elsie..It's more like a house manager...He needs someone to take care of the proper function of the whole vicarage. To make sure, that the cook, the maids and all the other people, who are working for him are doing what's expected and of course, that would mean guarding some important events-when he has some important guests. It's a full time, responsible job, but I don't have to live in the vicarage...The financial conditions, that he offered are satysfying for me, so I agreed at once...I hope that you won't mind that decision..”

“How could I mind Charles?...I'm so happy that this happened...You are the most appropriate person to do this job and I suspect that Rev Travis will value you more, than His Lordship. He always speaks highly of you...”

“Elsie...I'm glad that you approve...”

“You don't need my approval Charles...So, almost everything is settled...I think that we should start to get our things move to Mrs Sanders, starting from tomorrow..\that way on Thursday, we can easily move there...I don't want to spend a minute longer here, than it's needed. I'm sure that we will find a cottage to live in soon...There is only one more question left-my work..I have to find some occupation for me in the village..”

“Elsie, I already told you, that you don't have to work...The salary that Rev Travis offered me, will be enough to maintain us both...You can be just my wife...I won't mind...”

“No Charles...That would not be good. I want us to work together, live together, do everything together...Remember that a considerable amount of your savings, will be use to buy us a cottage.. It will be better if I will work too...I'm not a woman who could spend the whole day at home, doing nothing...”

“As you wish my love..I think your independence is one of the things I love you for the most...But you have to promise, that you won't work as hard as here, so you will still have time to take care of your husband...”

“Like cook him dinner for example? I'm afraid that I'm not a great cook and you may feel disappointed...”

“I wasn't thinking about cooking Elsie...”

“Oh? And what were you thinking about Charlie...?”-Elsie smiled seductively to Charles...

“You know very well my little minx...I would have shown you right now, if...”

“I know...We should not cause another scandal at Downton, otherwise His Lordship will be ready to get us out on the street, in the middle of the night...But in two days....In two days, we will have to show no restraint...”

“Elsie...”

The kiss that they've exchanged, was filled with passion and anticipation...They had to put on hold their feelings, but there was light on the way, as they knew that in two days, nothing or nobody in the world, would stop them from expressing it to each other...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today my lovelies...I know it's too sweet and unbelivable that everything works so easily for them, but in the fiction world we can make it easy, than it is in the real world...I will update tomorrow again and we will go through the wedding in Ripon, the celebratory lunch after and of course the wedding night at Mrs Sanders guest house...Boy, I hope that Mrs Sanders has an ear plugs, because ;-) ;-) ;-) Sorry for any errors, if you liked it, please let me know and see you soon-tommorow, I hope...


	11. Life is the art of choice-11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone. As I promised, I'm back with the new chapter. Today we are moving on with Charles and Elsie's story and the wedding is ahead of us...Plus, they are also leaving Downton.... Will those changes affect them in a good or bad way?

Two next days were rather hectic for Charles and Elsie. They were getting ready to leave Downton and they moved most of their things to Mrs Sanders guest house. She didn't lie telling them, that she will give them her best room. It was indeed lovely and it was a true consolation for them, that they will finally share one room in such nice surroundings...

By Wednesday night, they were fully ready for the change that was ahead of them...Each of them had a different approach to that question. Elsie was rather relieved, that she can move out of the house that treated them so badly, after so many years of faithful service... She was doubly glad, because she, just as Charles, received an unexpected proposal of work, which was a result of Isobel Crawley's help... Dr Clarkson who had more and more work in his office, needed a help for the office-a person who would organize everything-scheduling patient's visits, taking care about organizing the office etc. It was a perfect offer for Elsie-because she spent most of her life organizing life of other people and she liked and respected the doctor and Mrs Crawley very much. She suspected that it was mostly Mrs Crawley's merit and she promised herself to thank her in a proper time, after all the confusion connected with the wedding, the move and starting all their lives from scratch. 

On the last night, that they spent at the Abbey, Elsie felt Charles's sorrow as it was her own... He was silent and his face expression was sadder than usual, even though he was trying to hide it. The servants made a small, spontaneous goodbye party for them and it was very touching...Everyone was nice to them, even the two villains- Thomas and O'Brien, have changed their tune for the night. Everyone wished them good luck and expressed hope, that they will still see each other from time to time...

Elsie and Charles thanked them cordially for the long lasting cooperation and invited them for their church wedding, which was suppose to take place in two weeks.   
After the party ended, Elsie went to her sitting room with Mrs Patmore, to say goodbye in private and they both had tears in their eyes, as they realized that this is goodbye..They were still to live in the same village, to see each other in the church, in the shop or at the post office, but it was not the same as living together under one roof....

When Elsie and Beryl finally said goodbye and Beryl went to sleep, Elsie headed into Charles's pantry and she found him sitting by his desk, with an expression of total lost on his face. The mask that he was trying to wear all evening, in front of the others, has fallen now and sadness and despair were written all over his face...He expected at least some warm goodbye from the family and all he got was the laconic wishes of happiness, in his new life from His Lordship..The other members of the family have not said a word to him, even Lady Mary, although Charles had a feeling that she wanted to say something to him, but she never had a chance, because as soon as she opened her mouth, she met a severe sight from her father...When the family left to go upstairs, Charles saw that Lady Mary's eyes were full of tears and that broke him completely...

Elsie thought, that she needed to help him survive those hardest moments of saying goodbye with their old life...She took his hand and lead him upstairs, when she saw the question in his eyes, she told him:

“Come Charles....We will say goodbye to the house...”

He didn't ask anything more and simply followed her upstairs...They were walking through the most used rooms, looking at them, trying to process and remember as much as possible...Every now and then, Elsie took Charles's hand in hers and she gently squeezed it, to give him courage... It was almost surreal, as they were walking through the dark and quiet house, silently saying goodbye...

The next day...

On the next day, Elsie got help from her two friends- Mrs Patmore and Anna, who helped her with the hair and they made sure, that the best dress and coat she had, looked especially beautiful on her that day. Charles managed on his own and they got their last things, which they dropped off to Mrs Sanders- His Lordship was kind enough, to let Branson-the chauffeur, to drive them there, he also waited for them and drove them to the station, so they could catch a train to Ripon.  
At noon, as it was scheduled, they stood in front of the registrar, with two random people as their witnesses and encircled by those foreign people, they promised each other to live together in sickness and in health, for richer and for poorer, till death do them part...  
Elsie was so touched, that she barely stopped herself from crying and Charles on the other hand, had that idiotic grin on his face, which you can often see at the faces of the grooms...  
The ceremony was short and soon they left the registry office as Mr and Mrs Carson...They still had some time to their return train to Downton, so they decieded to walk in the park situated nearby, as the weather was extremely pleasant that day..  
Charles offered his hand to Elsie and they were walking side by side, laughing and talking...It seemed like some great burden was taken away from them...Even though they left their secure home today, to face the unknown, they felt that now, when they were already husband and wife, there was no storm or no life troubles, that could knock them out, They were perfectly happy. Together...  
When they arrived back to Downton village, it was already late afternoon, so they decided to have dinner in the local pub, before they will go back, to spent their first night as married couple at their new, temporary home...  
The dinner was delicious and the wine was excellent...Both Charles and Elsie had too many glasses, but none of them didn't mind...It helped them to relax...  
Charles was looking at Elsie with adoration in his eyes, he still couldn't believe, that she now belonged to him, that he was fully responsible for her from now on...He thought how beautifully she looked...:

“Elsie...Are you happy? Tell me the truth? Have our marriage made you happy?”

“Charles...How can you even doubt it? I've never been so happy in my entire life...This is the beginning of our new life...”

“It is...It's going to be different, than the one we knew so far...”

“It is, but that doesn't mean it's going to be worse...”

“I agree...Oh look, it's dark already, don't you think that we should go back now?”

“I can see that you are tired and feel the great need to go to sleep Charlie..”

“I'm a little tired..And I feel a need to go to bed, but not neccesarily to sleep..”

“Charles Carson! Can't believe what I'm hearing”-Elsie teased Charles...

“Well Mrs Carson...You are hearing correctly...Can we please go back?...”-he touched her hand gently...

“Of course we can...Can't wait to finally be alone with you...”

Charles felt a hot wave going through his body, when he heard Elsie saying those words...They left in a hurrry, paying the bill and went straight to their new house, they met Mrs Sanders on the way, who wished them both good luck, in their new, married life and she invited them for breakfast next day, offering it to them as her wedding gift. They thanked her and went to their room, eager to finally be left alone in peace...

The room was warm and cozy and when they both entered and locked the door, they felt like in their own, private paradise...Charles was so impatient and he took Elsie in his arms and started to kiss her...She felt his desire, he was trembling all over from it, as was she...Their kisses were bold, impatient, hot and full of love and lust...

“Charles....Charlie...Sweetheart...We need to..I need to..Take a bath...Will you give me few minutes....?”

“Oh Elsie...Please just don't be long....I am so...”

“I know you are....I will do it as quickly as possible...You can go after me...”

Elsie hurried to the bathroom and she thought that never in her life, she took the bath so fast...It was the same for Charles...It wasn't more than twenty minutes, when they were both back, in their night clothes...Elsie was stadning by the window, looking at full moon, when she felt Charles's hands wrapping around her waist...She turned around and let his impatient lips to caress hers...She never felt so relaxed and so in love...They were all alone, separated from the rest of the world, with no need to hurry...  
Charles was getting more and more aroused, when he touched his newly weded wife...He wanted to cherish and adore her for the rest of hislife...Both of them couldn't get enough of the kisses...They've kissed passionately, hungrily,with no stopping, until the need of breath made them stop...They went towards the bed and when they sat on it, Elsie felt very brazen and she reached to Charles's sensitive place, to stroke him there gently...Only one layer of material-his pajama pants, were a barrier between them...As she stroked him with reverence,his head fell down and he whispered her name:

“Elsie...Oh God, Elsie....My love...You are wonderful...”

Elsie continued to do what she was doing, feeling a clear result of her action...Charles knew that he had to stop her, so they wouldn't cross the line, when it will all end, before it's even began...He took her hand, kissed it and started to undress her and him...They both inserted themselves under the duvet...  
Elsie moaned quietly, when their naked bodies connected...There was something extremely sensual about this...She and Charles both naked, lying so close....  
His hands were caressing her...He touched her body so delicately, that she felt like loosing her senses...Her quiet whimpers and moans encouraged him to go on...She wasn't passive in all this...She ran her hands through his body and soon her hand closed around his manhood...  
He groaned louder, than he should and she was scared that she might have hurt him...

“Charlie...Am I hurting you?...”

“Elsie...You are not hurting me...You are giving me heaven on earth with your touches...Oh Elsie, I want you so much....All of you...”

“I'm all yours now Charlie...You can have all of me, however you like..”

He groaned again, wondering, if she had any idea, how that kind of words affected him...His lips started to travel around her body....He was kissing, licking and sucking every sweet spot on her body and she was writhing restlessly on the bed...

“Oh Charles...Oh my love...God...Charles....Please...”

“Please what sweetie? Tell me what you need?”

“I need you Charlie...Only you..Now..Please, don't make me wait any longer...”

“Your wish is my command my darling...”

He gently spread her legs and entered her carefully, not wanting to cause any pain or discomfort...It took a while, before her body adjusted to him and he perfectly recognised that moment...He moved in her slowly...When her initially quiet moans increased with time, his lips landed on hers, he kissed her so sensually and it was ideally synchronized with his movements inside her... 

Even though they were caught into the throes of passion, they still had to showed restraint and couldn't do much noise...In the almost complete silence of the room, the cracking bed, was the only sign of their love activity...

She was moaning into his mouth now and every little of her signs of appreaciation for his actions, made him prouder... He was so close to his release now, but he didn't want to let her down...So he did everything he could, to stop himself from finishing before she did...His efforts were fully rewarded, as very soon, she shuddered beneath him and she was pulsing around him, whispering his name...The sight of her face, the expression of delight, was more than enough for him to follow her... He came right after her and spilled his love nectar inside her....  
Charles fell on the bed, next to Elsie and she stroke his face gently...He opened his eyes, coming back to reality and she snuggled into him...

“I love you Charles...I'm so proud and happy to be your wife....”

“I love you too Elsie....I've never been so happy in my entire life...We made a huge sacrifice to be together, but it was totally worth it....”

“I know...We will be so happy together you will see...I will try to be the best wife for you...”

“And I will try to be the best husband...I promise my love...My Elsie...Mrs Carson...”

They've shared a loving kiss and soon they both driffted off to sleep, cozily cuddling all night long...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today friends...Whoa! So Mr and Mrs Carson are happily weded and beded. Everything looks perfect and it could be a great moment to finish the story, but I'm not going to do that, because, numer one-we still have to marry them in the church and number two...You will see in the next chapter ;-) ;-) ;-) Sorry for any errors. Hope you still like the story, if so, please let me know and I will be happy. Thank you for everything, stay safe and see you soon!


	12. Life is the art of choice-12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello all. So good to be back with you....This story is slowly coming to an end, but I predict maybe two or three chapters, that depends from the ideas and I'm not very creative recently... In this one, we will take a look of how life is going for our lovebirds outside the Abbey. In their new place and in their new jobs...Hope you will like it ;-)

Their new life was definitely something to get use to...When they lived and worked in Downton, all the days were the same. Similar routine over and over again. Everything was predictable. They knew exactly how their day will begin and how it will end. 

Now, in their new life, that they were slowly, but effectively building together everyday, everything was different. Charles, who was very nervous about his new job, has found himself very contended with it. Working as a house manager at the vicarage, was so different from his duties in the big house. Only few days after he started working there, he swiftly realized, that he didn't have as many duties, as he had in Downton.. Things were more manageable...The staff at the vicarage, was a very nice group and it was nice working with them. They were working so dilligently, that Charles often discovered that he didn't have a lot to do. His working hours were quite different now. He started at 8.30, because Rev Travis had his breakfast scheduled at 9 am. Half an hour was enough for Charles, to make sure that everything was prepared. He finished his duties early enough, to go back to the guest house and have dinner with Elsie. Reminiscinig his never ending hours of work in the Abbey, he was quite contended with the change or at least he was trying to convience himself that he was...

Elsie was more than happy with her new job too. Organizing something was her second nature, so she was thrilled to be able to help the doctor running his office. He was a fellow Scot, so they respected and understood each other very well. And Mrs Crawley was such a nice woman...When Elsie was a housekeeper at Downton, their relations were completely different. Mrs Crawley was a part of the upstairs people and Elsie was a part of downstairs people. The limit between them was clear. Now, Elsie often forgot that they were from the different spheres. Mrs Crawley treated Elsie as her equal and she always turned to her with respect and kindness. Elsie sensed, that Mrs Crawley didn't support the way Lord Grantham treated her and Charles, although she never openly expressed her views on that matter. They were good friends now and when they had a free moment, they often drank tea together-all three of them, each one of them coming from different background, but understanding and respecting one another.

Charles and Elsie were having a best time at Mrs Sanders guest house-she was such a kind woman, who didn't interfere too much, but was always eager to talk to them. She offered them breakfast everyday-Charles and Elsie thought, that it would be inappropriate to use her kindness, so they paid her adequately more for their stay. When they had free moments, they were trying to find a suitable cottage for themselves, but it turned out to be more difficult that it seemed. All the cottages that they were seeing, were either to big, to small, to expensive or too far away from the village. So for now, they were forced to live at Mrs Sanders, who was very pleased about their presence. She use to repeat to them all the time, that they are her favorite guests and that she no longer feels alone, as she constantly did after her husband died.

Between their new jobs, their search for the perfect cottage and an attempts to find themselves in their new life, Charles and Elsie always tried to find a moment to be alone...Their also new found level of intimacy, was so amazing for both of them, that they took every possible opportunity to develop that sphere of life.   
Never in all her life, Elsie would have imagined, that so called “marital duties” can be so pleasurable. Charles was such an incredible husband and lover..So gentle, delicate, but passionate at the same time..She never had enough of him...When they finished their work and went back to the guest house, they were all over each other all the time, till the early mornings, which made them part again...They spent most of their nights, cuddling closely and were very reluctant to part in the morning...

Charles was craving for Elsie's presence...He was used to spent all days with her, back at the Abbey. Now, he just couldn't wait to finish his work and go back to the guest house, to see her, hear her and feel her closeness again. She was like a soothing lotion on an irritated skin. It wa not a very romantic comparision, but it was all he could think of. Their intimate life was unique... He loved her so tremendously, as she loved him, so discovering all the new, thrilling things with her, in their marital bed, was like the greatest adventure of his life...He often wished, that he could spent all his free time in bed with her, but their current living situation was limiting them both in this area...Mrs Sanders was a great host and they loved living in her house, but the lack of privacy was part of the deal..  
Charles was hoping to find a cottage for them, as soon as possible and he was a little impatient about this matter dragging out for so long...

On one of the lovely mornings, when they had more time to themsleves, because both of them were working till late last night, they got a permission to go to work a little later, than usual, Charles and Elsie were lying in bed cuddling...Last night, they were both so tired, that their love actvity was put on hold, due to their exhaustance...Elsie wanted to get up, to start preparing for another day, but Charles was decided to not to let her out of his arms...He was kissing her lips so gently, teasing her in a way that was proved to be effective...So effective, that she already felt a good known tingling between her thighs...Although she surreneder to his kisses, she knew that the time was not appropriate for such an activity, even though they both wanted it very much...

“Charlie..”-she mewled, parting with him reluctantly...”I have to get up, we can't now....What's gotten into you so early in the morning?”

“I have my beautiful, appealing wife so close to me...Her enticing curves are tempting me, her scent drives me wild and you are asking what's gotten into me? Elsie...You are a an evil temptress, you know that?...”-His lips caressed her neck and his impatient hands squeezed her breasts...”What's the matter Mrs Carson? Don't you want your husband anymore?...”

“Mmmmm...Charlie...Oh please don't...If we start now, we will never be able to go to work on time...Charlie..Charles!”-that exclamation was a result of of his hands travelling down her body, under her night dress...As always, she shivered, when he was touching her, especially when he reached that place...

“Elsie...Just let us...We didn't have any of that last night and I feel a great need of...Of you...Will be quick about it..I promise....Unless you don't want to, than I can stop...”-he preteneded to be insulted by her slight resistance and he stopped touching her, but she has already reached a point, when she really didn't want him to stop...

“Charles...If you stop now, I will be very mad at you...I won't let you do it...”

“You won't let me, you say and what will you do to make me go back to what I was doing a moment ago? Do you have any secret, powerful weapon to do that?”

“I sure do...”-Elsie smiled slyly at her husband and she reached to his manhood, stroking him gently through his pajama trousers...Causing an instant reaction..She watched with satisfaction, as he closed his eyes and groaned at her touches...

“You wicked woman...You know what to do...”

“Of course I do..I had the best teacher...”

Charles smiled proudly, hearing those words and he wasted no more time...They decided to skip the breakfast this day, just to have this extra time to themselves...It wasn't more than few minutes, when they were both moaning from satisfaction and kissing, after giving themselves another doze of pleasure...  
When they finally got up, Charles hurried with his morning toilet and went swiflty to work, kissing Elsie goodbye. She followed his steps and pretty soon she was ready to go to work too..  
When she reached downstairs, she met Mrs Sanders and she thought, that she should apologized for not showing up at breakfast this morning.

“Good morning Mrs Sanders. How are you today? I'm really sorry that we didn't attend breakfast today with you, but we were both working late yesterday and we wanted to get some more sleep before another day of duties will start. I hope we didn't cause much trouble for you.”

“Good morning Mrs Carson. I'm fine today, thank you. It was no trouble at all. I'm very happy whenever you are joining me for breakfast, but I don't expect you to do that everyday. So did you have a good sleep? I know Mr Carson did, he was humming, when he left for work, so I'm assuming that he was well rested or very conteneded.”

“Yes...Indeed, he was...We both had a very good sleep...”-Elsie blushed a bit, sensing that Mrs Sanders knew exactly, what was the cause of their absence at breakfast. She felt embarrassed by this situation a bit...

“Very glad to hear that Mrs Carson...It's so nice to see a marriage like yours...Two, happy people...I'm ever so glad, that you are here and I hope you will not move quickly...”

“Thank you Mrs Sanders. We really appreciate your hospitality and so far, it seems that we will be using your guest house for a while, so I'm glad that you have nothing against it..”

“Nothing at all. I won't stop you further, you are probably going to work now. Have a great day Mrs Carson, I'm sure you will have have a great day, after a night of good..sleep...”-Mrs Sanders was trying to be serious, but the faint trace of smile on her face, showed Elsie, what Mrs Sanderds was really thinking about...

“Thank you Mrs Sanders and have a great day too...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for today. I hope you won't totally hate it..As I said, I'm not particularly creative recently..So chapters are now shorter..If you don't hate it, please let me know...;-) I will be greatful...Tomorrow, Elsie will receive an interesting news from Mrs Crawley...Sorry for any possible errors. Stay safe and see you soon!


	13. Life is the art of choice-13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello my friends. I'm here again to update. As I told you yesterday, chapters are shorter now than before and it will probably stay that way for a while, but I'm trying to give as much content to each chapter as I can. In this one, Elsie will have an interesting conversation with Isobel Crawley and she will pass the informations that she received to Charles later...Hope you will like it.

Elsie was really enjoying her new job. Helping the doctor seemed so much useful thing to do for her, than serving the aristocratic family. She never said that out loud, but deep in her heart, she always believed, that the way the Crawleys lived was outdated. She saw how the world has changed recently, how a way of life has progressed, how differently people were living now and yet, the aristocratic families, still wanted to function the same way as ages ago, pretending that the world has stopped. 

Elsie often thought about those matters while she was still at Downton, but she never shared those feelings with anyone, even Charlie...Above all with Charlie. Even now, when they were married and shared their most intimate thoughts, she would still be careful about speaking such matters with him. She knew his way of thinking. He didn't embrace changes as fast and as willingly as she did. Elsie understood and respected his attitude. After all, people are different and what is obvious for one person, can be quite unthinkable for another.

Working for the doctor, she felt that her life had new meaning now. Of course her position was lower, than when she was a housekeeper, but she really didn't mind. Elsie was not a woman craving for honors. Her new job was much more flexible. Not only did she organized the office, which she has done with perfection, but also she was a kind and understanding guardian angel for the patients, who were attending their visits at the doctor. For most of them, those visits were uncomfortable at some level, sometimes they received bad news and they were devastated-Elsie's natural instincts-as warm heart and compassion for other people, were a tremendous help in this job. She was doing all she could, to make it easy for the patients, to get trough the visit. Her smile, her nice words and her will to help people, made her a perfect employee and Dr Clarkson thanked heaven above for his decision.

Also Mrs Crawley, who was a medical caretaker, found Elsie to be the perfect person for the job. They often shared nice conversations not only about work, but also about life in general and with each of those conversations, both Elsie and Isobel gained much more respect and admiration for each other.  
In one of the rainy days, when the weather was simply dreadful, from morning till the afternoon, Elsie and Isobel shared their afternoon tea, after they finished sorting out the medical files of the patients. They could do it in peace today, as their were no patients scheduled this day, because Dr Clarkson was attending a one day medical conference in York. After they managed to sort everything, they decided to have a quiet moment with tea, biscuits and a moment of gossips...Especially Isobel had something interesting to say to Elsie and even though she was hesitating before, whether she should give this news to Elsie or not, she ultimately decided to do that after all...

“I'm so glad that we finally got a chance to sort things out. Those kind of days are the best for sorting papers, when the doctor is not here. He will be very contended about this new order. You are a real treasure Mrs Carson. I'm not sure how could I manage without your help.”

“Thank you Mrs Crawley. It's no nice of you to appreciate me that way. I agree with you-the doctor will be pleased. He is really obsessed with the order in the office, just like me...I also like when all things are on the right spot. I guess it's a part of our Scottish heritage”-Elsie smiled and Isobel replied with a smile too.

“Ever since you started working here, this place is so much nicer...Earlier, we had few conflicts with the doctor, but as you came here it has stopped. You are a perfect conciliator, you know that?”

“Well, I guess that's a remain from my work at Downton, you have no idea how many conflicts I managed to compromised there.”

“I can imagine. I always admired your work, when you were at Downton-I often repeated that upstairs, that they have no idea, how lucky they are having such person like you, who is practically running the whole house, but I'm not sure that they appreciated it enough...”

“I'm not sure about that too...”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course Mrs Crawley...You can ask me anything.”

“Do you miss the old life at Downton? Do you find it difficult to be away from the house?”

“Would you be surprised if I tell you that not particularly? I don't want to seem ungrateful to you or anything, because without a doubt, that house and this job gave me a solid background in my career, but I do not miss it so much...Downton couldn't accept my new way of life...Our new way of life...Me and my husband and we can't imagine being apart anymore...”

“I understand...It's quite obvious, that you have a very loving husband Mrs Carson. I see how he looks at you in the church, but I sometimes wonder, is he not the one who misses that style of life more than you do?”

“Oh, he definitely does miss it a lot more...He doesn't say much about it, but I know him so well...He would never admit it..He likes his new job very much and he is appreciated, but it is impossible to compare it with being the butler of the house like the Abbey...”

“Still, he gave it all up just for you...”-Isobel smiled and there was a warm expression in her eyes...

“He did. Just as I gave it all up for him and so far, neither of us regrets this decision..”

“I'm glad to hear that...I was asking about it, because I have some news from the house and I was wondering, if I can pass them to you, would it not hurt you too much, but you seem to be ok with the situation, so I figured you would want to know this...”

“I would...What are those news?”

“You know that Lord Grantham found your replacement rather quickly?”

“Yes..He was so impatient for both of us to leave as soon as possible...We had to hurried our wedding and rent a room at Mrs Sanders, because it was impossible to find a cottage in such hurry..”

“I see..I wasn't aware of that...Anyway, he found your replacement..Some old comrade from the army recommend those people to Lord Grantham for the positions of the butler and the housekeeper. They are actually brother and sister-Mr and Mrs Flowers.”

“Brother and sister? How very unusual...I never heard of anything like that before...And is His Lordship ok with that? He is reluctant to such revolutions usually..”

“He was a little surprised with it, but then he said, that although it's unusual, he doesn't see anything inappropriate in this, so he hired them, based on the opinion of his old friend and he already regrets his decision..”

“Is he really? Why?”

“Apparently, they have no idea about running a house, at least not such a big house as Downton...From what I've heard from Lord Grantham, there is a terrible mess in the question of the staff management..It seems that nothing is done as proper as it was before, when you and Mr Carson were in charge...”

“Well, I don't want to be harsh or anything, but he has no one but himself to blame for that..”

“Bu that's not all...Lady Grantham also mentioned, that when she visited the servants hall, she found it messy and untidy...She was shocked, as she never knew such situation..When you were in charge everything was working as it should be...But the worst part is...I'm not even sure if I should tell you this...”

“Please tell me..I promise that I won't repeat that to anyone.....”

“All right...I believe you won't..Lady Mary confessed to me, that ever since they came to Downton, few valuable things are missing...In the beginning, they didn't notice, but later on, it started to be very suspicious...She never admitted anything openly, but I think that deep in their hearts, they are suspecting that the new butler and the housekeeper have something to do with it...”

“Now, that's an interesting information...Would you be very angry if I shared it with my husband?”

“Of course not. I rely on your discretion. Both of you...That's why I told you about it...”

“Thank you Mrs Crawley...I promise that besides my husband, I will not reveal it to anyone else...”

“I trust you Mrs Carson...”

Later, in the evening...

Charles and Elsie were sitting on the wide window sill. It was already a late evening, they were both after dinner and they sat in silence, enjoying their mutual evening together, listening to the sound of a falling rain...

Charles wrapped his arms tightly around Elsie and she snuggled into him, resting her head on his chest...She felt so calm, secure and loved...Every now and then, she rose her head and looked Charles in the eyes with love...He responded to those looks, by giving her a sweet kiss on the lips.. It was a magical moment and Elsie wondered, if it was ok to break it with news, which she received from Mrs Crawley...After a while, of the constant battle of her thoughts, she figured, that it would not be ok to hide it from him....So she started talking and she told him everything what she heard from Isobel earlier...Charles was so shocked, that he didn't say anything for a while, processing all her words...

“Charles...Will you please say something, because now I'm beginning to worry, if I did the right thing telling you this..Maybe it was better to keep those informations to myself?”

No Elsie..You did the right thing...I wanted to know this...I'm just so shocked and so surprised, that I found myself speechless for a while...”

“If you want to know what I think-he got what he deserved...He had the best butler in the world, but he wanted a change...So now he has one..”

“Elsie...You shouldn't say that..You know that he couldn't accept the idea of our marriage, but that is not the reason to disrespect him..”

“He disrespected you..And me...”

“But he is a Lord..”

“But that doesn't mean that he deserves more respect than we do...Anyway..I bet he regrets his decision now...”

“Maybe he is, maybe he isn't..I guess we will never know that...”

“One way or another..It's not our problem anymore...We should not even talk about it any longer...”-Elsie was worried, when she saw the pain on Charles's face..”Oh my darling, I'm sorry...I hurt you with it...I knew I shouldn't say that...”

“It's all right Elsie...Everything is all right now...I have a new job, a nice place to live and my wonderful wife in my arms..Could I possibly want more from life? I don't think so..”-Charles kissed Elsie's temple few times and tightened his embrace..

Elsie sighed deeply and she put her head on his chest again..He was now rocking her gently and after a while, she felt like she was slowly driffting off to sleep, in the safest place in the world-her husband's arms...Her last thought was, that she was glad that Charles took it so well, after that thought, she was sleeping deeply...She didn't see that Charles's eyes were still wide open, she also didn't see two large tears running down his face....

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It got a little soppy by the end, I don't know why...I never plan these things, but sometimes they just happen...Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter, it was much longer than I thought it will be, but I guess that's because of Elsie's conversation with Isobel. That's probably the first time, that I had Isobel in my story and I'm happy, because she is one of my favorite upstairs characters...If you liked it, you know the drill ;-) Sorry ofr errors..Stay safe and see you soon!


	14. Life is the art of choice-14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone. Tough week is over and I'm here with you again. Really missed writing this week, it gives me the necessary escape from reality... In this chapter, Elsie and Charles will finally found a perfect cottage for them and they will be able to start living under their own roof... Hope you will like it.

Ever since Elsie told Charles about the current events at the Abbey and the problems that Lord Grantham was experiencing, with his new butler and housekeeper, he was restless. He pretended that he didn't care about that at all, but Elsie knew him too well, not to see the clear anxiety, that he was feeling since he learnt that his beloved family was in trouble... 

They never mentioned it again and even when Isobel told her some news from the big house, she no longer repeated it to Charlie...Other than that, their life was going smoothly. They were both so happy about their new jobs. Charles was tremendously respected by Rev Travis, who kept on repeating to all of his guests, how his vicarage has gained a new life, ever since Charles started to manage the house. Charles was so grateful for such wonderful evaluation and he increased his efforts to work as best as he could, but even doing so, he still had a proper amount of time for his private life and he was more than glad about it. He and Elsie spent all their free time concentrating on looking for the cottage, so far without success and Charles sometimes was in despair, thinking that they will never be able to find a place for themselves. They were really comfortable at Mrs Sanders and they liked and respected her, as she respected them, but they were both eager to feel a little bit freely, being in their own home.

Elsie's professional life was going as well as Charles's. She loved working in the Downton hospital and ever since the memorable talk with Isobel, she felt like she found a new friend, They shared many nice conversations ever since that time and Elsie started to forget that there was once a line, a barrieer, that separated them, when she was a servant at Downton and Isobel was a member of the family. Every day gave her new experiences and the patients simply adored her. She took care of each one of them and they couldn't praise Elsie more, when they were speaking to the doctor, which only confirmed his belief-that hiring Elsie was the best thing he could do.

Elsie loved her time with Charles. When they came back from work, they were practically unseparable. They did everything together-eat, drink, talk, reading books, talking, laughing, cuddling and making love. Whatever they were doing, Elsie never felt so completely happy and united with another human being, as she did with Charles. Only sometimes, when she noticed, that his face suddenly had that sad expression, her heart clenched, because she knew very well why that was...She knew that he was missing Downton and that he was worried about the well-being of the family. Whenever she saw that he was sad, she tried to chase away those moments, by giving him the sweetest kiss or whispering some loving words into his ear. That had an instant effect on him. His face brightened with that warm smile, that was reserved just for her and he wrapped his arms tighter around her and held her, like he never wanted this to end. Sometimes, in the morning, when they both needed to get up and go to work, it was really difficult for both of them, even with their contentment from their jobs, they still felt a great need of not being separated for longer than it was necessary. 

Doubtlessly, they loved each other so much, that every moment when they couldn't be together was a torture. Elsie was also waiting impatiently for the moment, when they will finally find a cottage to live. She wanted to have her own house, a house that she could take care of, a house in which she intend to create a happy space for her and Charlie. Their efforts to find this place were not successful, but that  
was about to change soon...

It happened unexpectedly, on one of the afternoons...Elsie was just finishing sorting the patients files, when Isobel came back to hospital after lunch, that she had in the big house. She went inside the room very excited and she gave Elsie the news about the cottage that was for sale-it belonged to Mr and Mrs Hamilton, who decided to sell it, as they were about to move to their son, who married a very rich woman and they both lived comfortably in London. The cottage was recently renewed and redecorated and because Mr and Mrs Hamilton decided to leave all the furnitures, it was the perfect occasion for Charles and Elsie. Isobel advised Elsie, that she should contact them as soon as possible. They wanted to move out very quickly, they weren't even lived in the cottage already-they stayed at Mrs Hamilton's sister, waiting imapatiently for the buyers.

Elsie was as much excited as Isoble was. The cottage was in the ideal place, on the edge of the village, but close to the vicarage-Charles would have a ten minute walk to work from there and Elsie five minutes more. She knew the cottage and although she has never been inside, she always liked that cottage. She couldn't wait to tell Charles about that.

As soon as he was back from work, they both decided to go there and take a look at the cottage. They went to Mrs Hamilton's sister house and asked her if they could see the cottage. Mrs Hamilton gave them keys and she was very glad, that they could be the potential buyers of the cottage, as she knew them both well and respected them.

Charles and Elsie paced quickly towards the cottage and when they entered inside, very soon, they both felt, that they finally found their place on earth.. The cottage was simply lovely...Encircled with a small, but managable garden. The downstairs living room was flowing nicely into the kitchen. There was a downstairs bathroom, not only the toilet, but the complete bathroom and when they went upstairs, they found two bedrooms there. One smaller, with the nice view on the front of the cottage and the main bedroom, which had windows coming to the back garden. They both blushed a bit, seeing an enormous bed in the main bedroom. They looked at each other, with a promise in their eyes, already thinking how they could use it in the future.

Apart from two bedrooms, there was a second bathroom upstairs, which made a perfect addition to the rest. Everything was indeed renewed and all it would took for them, was just to get their things here and start living. All it remained, was to make a decision...

“Well, Charles...What do you think?”

“I think it's perfect Elsie...We finally found it. We couldn't ask for more...Do you agree?”

“I do, but the decision is yours to make. After all, you are the one who are covering most of the purchase. It's your money Charlie..”

“Elsie...Sweetheart...I already told you, in our marriage there are no such things as my money or your money...These are our money and don't you ever forget it..I want us to make this decision together...You think that we should buy this cottage? Because I do..The price is a little high, but that's understable, considering that it is renewed and all the furniture are here. So are we buying it?”

“Yes Charlie. We are buying it...Can't wait for us to live here. We are going to be so happy.”

“I would be happy even if I had to live in the cave, as long as I'm with you...Elsie, we are going to have a cottage, oh Elsie..That makes me so happy that I could dance...”

Charles felt like some kind of madness took over him, without thinking, he took Elsie in his arms and he lift her, dancing around the room with her..

“Put me down, you daft man, you will drop me!”

“I will never drop you sweetie! How could I drop the most precious person in my life?”

He cautiously put Elsie down and they forgot the whole world for a moment, kissing delicately. After that, they went all around the house one more time and took the keys back to Mrs Hamilton.. She was extremely satisfied, when she found out, that they decided to buy the cottage. They arranged a meeting at the solicitor in few days and Charles and Elsie went back home, giving back the happy news to Mrs Sanders, who was glad and worried at the same time. She loved living under one roof with them, but she realized, that it was just a temporarily arrangement.

On the next day at work, Elsie announced the happy news to Isobel and the doctor. They were both thrilled for Elsie. They decided to help them in their moving. The doctor offered Elsie an extra day off on next Friday, as they were suppose to sign the contract with Mr and Mrs Hamilton on Thursday, so that would give them three whole days to settle in their new home.  
Isobel offered the help of her servants-her chauffer, who could help them move their things from the guest house, to the cottage and her maid, who could help organize things for Elsie in the cottage.

Elsie was so grateful for that. She literally counted the days to the sign of the contract and the move. So did Charles. The whole process ran smoothly. The signed a contract, Charles took the money from their bank account to pay for the cottage and on the next day, thanks to the cordiality of their new employers, they manged to move their things from Mrs Sanders guest house, who was almost crying, when she said goodbye to them. On the previous night, they ate a dinner together and she received a wonderful gift from Charles and Elsie-as a way of saying thank you. They were both so grateful to her. She gave them a roof over their head in the difficult situation, that they were in and they never meant to forget it.

Rev Travis also gave Charles an extra day off and offered one of his servants to help them. With such a strong team, Charles and Elsie had a feeling that everything was really going pretty well.   
Before they even realized, they were already settled in their new home.

On Saturday, they made the last arrangements, adjusting the decoration to their taste. They felt infinately happy. Two whole days of the exert work was about to pay off. They were finally at their own home, when they could feel casually.  
They decided to have their dinner in the pub, because after a tiring day, neither of them felt a great need of cooking. They went slowly towards the pub, laughing and feeling like they got to their private heaven at last.

The dinner was delicious and when they were coming back to the cottage, they started to talk about their church wedding. They moved the date with the vicar, waiting for the moment, when all the other things will be settled. Now, when they were, there was nothing else stopping them from getting married.

“I ought to think about preparations for our wedding. It's so soon Charlie...I need to find a dress.”

“Whatever you will be wearing Elsie, you will look gorgeous.”

“Flatterer! Remmeber, how I told you about my dreams of the perfect dress?”

“I remember. You will have any dress that you will dream of..Home at last. How beautiful that sounds...”

“Yes...Our own cottage...Oh Charlie...”-Elsie nestled into Charles, as they were both looking through the window of their new home...”Did you ever think that we will be so happy?”

“Never Elsie...I never knew that a person can be that happy...All thanks to you my darling...You gave me courage to change our lives...”

“And you wouldn't want to go back? To Downton? To our old life?”

“And loose all this? Never Elsie....Never...Being a butler of the Abbey was splendid, but being your husband gives me delight that I could never dreamed of..”

“Delight you say Charlie?...Since it's our first night under this roof, I really think that we shoud give a try to our new bed...It's so enormous, that I will have to look for you in it in the middle of the night...”

“Oh no you won't...Because I will never let you out of my arms...Trying out the new bed you say..I never realized that my wife was so forward..”

“About time for me to show it to you...”-Elsie was planting kisses along his jawline, causing a loud groan from her husband...”Take me to bed Charlie...Please..”

Charles needn't be told this twice...In less than no time, they were both upstairs, on their bed, kissing ardently in the light of the moon....Charles undressed Elsie slowly, enjoying every moment of it... And she helped him to get rid of his clothes...It was the first time, when they could feel so free, so casually...Without the fear of sudden interruptions, without unecessary presence of other people under the same roof...

They delved into kisses and caresses and they never wanted to stop... After few weeks from their wedding, they both felt so unfettered with each other...Initial embarassment was all gone and now their cherished their bodies without any limits....  
There was one more bonus now, when they were already living under their own roof. They no longer had to restraint their love making noises, as they did before and that new kind of freedom was additionally exciting for both of them..

When they made love, Charles kept his eyes wide open and he watched as Elsie's creamy thighs were wrapped around him, he watched as her perfect round breasts were bouncing, along with their body movements. He watched her blissful face expression, as he kept moving within her-her eyes slightly shut and her mouth parted...He listened to her moans of delight, which were getting louder and louder, as she was getting close to her climax...He didn't want to miss any of this glorious sights or sounds...

Sonner than later, she grabbed his arms and her body arched up, as she came into his arms, calling his name...He followed her immediately...  
They lied spent in their arms, smoothing and stroking their bodies...Elsie opened her eyes, smiled to Charles and she kissed him, putting an enormous love to that kiss...

“I love you Charlie...Welcome home...”

“I love you too Elsie...I am now home indeed...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was a long chapter, but as I said, I really missed writing...So, Charles and Elsie are happily settled in their cottage now and so far, I think thay are having fun...;-) We only have one more ceremony for them and everything will be just as it should be...Hope you liked it. As always, sorry for any errors. I have a favor to ask you. Please let me know, how would you like me to end the story-should they go back to Downton or should they stay right where they are-happily settled in their new life? Looking forward for your opinions. Thank you for everything and please stay safe!


	15. Life is the art of choice-15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hello dear people. Thank you very much for all yesterday's reviews and most of all, for your answers to my question. I had to tell you, that I was struggling with the question, whether I should bring Chelsie back to Downton or to leave them where they are..That's why I asked for your help and most of you voted for the other solution. Because I believe in democracy, I acknowledged the results of the democratic elections ;-), I will end the story with the solution that most of you voted for. This is the final chapter of the story. Hope you will like it.

On the morning of the day before their wedding, Charles woke up first...He looked through the window and he liked what he saw. The weather seemed to be pretty nice. The sun was shining brightly and although the air was chilly, as it would be expected in the beginning of October, it seemed that their wedding day tomorrow should be marked with fine weather. 

He and Elsie were both quite exhausted, as the preparations to the wedding were rather tiring. Now, everything seemed to be settled. The wedding ceremony was to take place in the local church, of course Rev Travis would lead it. The small party with a group of their closest friends from the Abbey and the village, was to take place at the school. They only invited few people from the Abbey and few locals from the village. Charles was wondering, if he should invite the family, but Elsie advised him against it. After how they were treated, she figured, that it would not be reasonable, if they invite the family members. Isobel was the only one who was invited, the only member of the upstairs family.

They decided that they should postpone their honeymoon till the spring, when the weather will be warmer and they could go to the seaside, to enjoy it to the fullest.  
Charles glanced at the wardrobe, where his elegant suit was hanging, already prepared to be taken off with him. According to the tradition, saying that the groom cannot see the bride before the wedding, Charles decided to spent their pre wedding night at Mrs Sanders, while Elsie was to stay in the cottage and be prepared by Beryl and Daisy, who managed to get their half day off together, so they could attend the Carsons wedding. Beryl was a great help for Elsie. She went with her to York, to find a wedding dress, that Elsie was always dreaming about. Elsie was pretty uncertain about her choice. She wanted a traditional white dress, but because of her age and the fact that she and Charles were already living like a married couple for quite a while, she decided that it would not be suitable for her. However, Beryl persuaded her, that she shouldn't totally gave up on her dreams and as a compromise, Elsie decided to buy a beautiful creamy dress. Simple and elegant, embellished with lace at the top. She selected a matching hat, almost the same color, with three pale blue roses on top. When she tried on the dress in the shop, Beryl almost cried and Elsie was tremendously touched. 

The dress was now fitted by the local dress maker, safely hidden from Charles, who was told not to look into the wardrobe of the guest bedroom. Beryl and Daisy promised Elsie, that they will come in the morning of the wedding day, to help her get dress and Mrs Sanders, their good friend, offered Elsie her own present-she ordered a qualified hair dresser, who was to help her get her hair done.  
Between all those wedding preparations, their jobs and everyday life, Charles and Elsie felt really tired, but so happy at the same time. They both waited impatiently for the wedding ceremony, sensing that it was the last stop of the long journey, that they twent through, ever since they understood, that they wanted to be together for the rest of their lives...

Charles's eyes now went to Elsie and warm smiled appeared on his face, when he was watching his sleeping beauty..To him, Elsie was the most beautiful woman on earth...He was actually worried, that they will have to be separated for one night...He didn't want to be far away from her even for a moment...But tradition was tradition..They already broke so many rules along the way, that now, for a change, it was good to follow the tradition.  
Charles ran his fingers through Elsie's hair gently and he kissed her forehead few times...She stirred in her sleep and clung to him...She sighed deeply and put her head right under his chin...She felt heat radiating from his body and his unique scent, that had calming effect on her...  
His hands made their journey through her enticing curves and when she felt it, she was almost fully awake...

“Mmmmm...Charlie....How wonderful it is to be woken up like that...”-She touched his chest, purring like a cat...”My wonderful, gorgeous man...”

“Good morning my sleeping beauty...It's so nice to wake up having you in my arms...Now, I am finally where I belong...”

“And where is that my love?”

“Right here, with you beside me...I have found a meaning of life...”

“And what is the meaning of it?”

“Staying in bed and making love to my wife, over and over again...”

“Charles Carson...My wanton husband...I love you so much...I don't even want to part with you for the night...”

“I don't want it etiher, but we should keep the tradition...We already broke so many rules...”

“We didn't Charlie...We just fell in love..That's not a crime, regardless of what Lord Grantham thinks about that...”

“You think he knows about our wedding?”

“Well...I didn't want to tell you that before, but...”

“What is it Elsie? Please tell me...”

“Beryl told me that the family is planning to attend our wedding, even though we didn't invite them..”

“But why? I hope that they are not doing some nasty trick..”

“No Charles. It's not that at all...Beryl does not know the details, but apparently His Lordship has some offer for you...Or for us...I'm afraid that he will want us back...He sacked his current butler and housekeeper few days ago..”

“He did? Why didn't you tell me before?”

“Charlie...With all this confusion that we are living now...We have so much going on...Does it make any difference for you? Would you except his proposition to go back?”  
“I would have to think about it...It's a big decision...We have already twisted our life upside down recently..Would you accept his offer Elsie?”

“No Charlie...I wouldn't. Whatever he has to offer to me, I'm not interested in it..I love my new job..It's so much better. I feel that my work is much more valuable, than it was at Downton. I help people Charlie. It's more important than planning a big house parties...I will not go back to Downton...I can't decide for you, but I will definitely not go back...”

Charles looked at Elsie and he made sure that her decision was final...She was a stubborn Scottish woman and he knew, that she will not change her mind, once she decided something... His own emotions were much more complicated, but...He put away the thought...Thinking that he doesn't have to decide this right now...  
He embraced Elsie and kissed her hair...She was the dearest person in the world for him and her happiness was most important...When he saw how she nestles into him, how she is longing for his closeness, for a declaration from him, that she is number one in his life, he already knew..That no amount of privilleges connected with his former job, will ever outshine his enormous love for Elsie and their new, wonderful life that they created with such effort...

Wedding day

The wedding day of Charles and Elsie was like a dream come true..The weather was splendid, the church ceremony went without any disruptions. There were more people than they expected to, as most of the locals knew and respected them tremendously. While walking to the aisle, they both saw the family too, but they were too focused on the ceremony to give it more attention.  
When they made their vows, they were both so touched...Elsie had tears in her eyes, tears of happiness..The moment that she was dreaming about for so long, has finally became reality. 

Charles was teary-eyed too...He didn't see anything or anyone else besides Elsie. He was focused only on her...When Rev Travis announced that they are husband and wife, Charles thought that his heart will burst from happiness. They shared a chaste kiss, as a sign of their marriage being finally sealed...  
After the ceremony, they walked to the school, along with their guests..Their was a long queue to them..Everyone wanted to celebrate with them and gave them their good wishes...  
Lord Grantham and his family were standing on the side, like they were waiting for a right moment to approach them...  
But before they had a chance for that, Charles asked everyone for the moment of their attention, as he was going to make a toast and he wanted to say a few words:

“My dear friends, Elsie and I want to thank you very much for being here with us today, to celebrate the happiest day of our life. We have come a long and painful way to get to where we are now, but it was worth it. I won't bore you with long speeches, so I'm just going to say, that I'm the luckiest man on earth, because this amazing woman-my wife- Elsie Carson, has decided to spent her life with me. She is like the most precious treasure and I wouldn't trade my life with her for anything else. No honours, no position or anything else, has ever gave me such joy and utter happiness as being her husband. Let's toast to my wonderful wife.”

Charles's words were received with an enormous applause. Their friends were clapping hands, circling around them and Elsie and Charles shared a brief, spontaneuos kiss, which met with even more applause from the guests..  
After a while, Lord Grantham and the family finally neared the happy couple....

“Carson and Mrs Carson. Let me congratulate to both of you...I hope that you don't mind, that we crashed in here uninvaited...”-Robert felt a little embarrassed with the situation...

“Not at all My Lord. On the contrary, we both see it as a great honor, that the family wanted to celebrate with us.”

“Carson, can I ask you for a moment of the private conversation?”-Robert asked Charles shyly.

“Of course My Lord.”

They went away and sat on the bench, situated near the wall.

“Carson, I want beat around the bush...I behaved badly towards you and Mrs Hughes and I'm really sorry about that...I shouldn't react that way, especially considering how devoted you and Mrs Hughes were to us all those years. Will you forgive the old, hot-tempered fool that I am?”

“Of course My Lord...You had a right to react that way...We broke the rules, which you consider important. I, myself considered those rules equally important all those years, but my love to my wife has won with the rules...You understand, that I couldn't do any other thing...I wanted to be fair to my wife and to the family..”

“Of course. Let's forget it, shall we?”

“I think that would be the best solution...”

“But that's not all I wanted to ask you...You might have heard, that I sacked my butler and the housekeeper. Bloody business. They almost lead our house to ruin and they were stealing from me...”

“Yes, indeed, I heard about that My Lord..”

“Would you...? Would you consider going back to your old job, you and Mrs Hugh..Mrs Carson of course...I will increase your salary, to make up all the mistakes that I've made..”

Charles felt hot flushes on his body..He looked at Lord's face full of hope, he glanced to the direction of family and saw hope on Lady Mary's face too...They knew what His Lordship was going to ask him about and they were hoping that he would say yes...Then his eyes went to Elsie and when he saw her beautiful face, which was so dear to him..Anxiety in her shining with love eyes...He knew...She didn't want him to go back..She didn't want him to change into a stuffy butler of the great house, whose main occupation was to take care of the Crawleys...She wanted him as her husband..Devoted to her..Not to the upstairs family...He read all those feelings from her face...

“My Lord...Your proposal is very attractive and if I had received it few weeks ago, I would have probably accepted it, however now, the situation has changed...I'm no longer a lonely island, there is another person in my life, whose opinion I cherish and value-my wife and she told me, that she doesn't want to go back to her old life, to our old life...So I'm afraid, I have to refuse your proposal...I'm sorry..”

“I understand. Carson, my old chap...I'm responsible for all this mess, so now I have take it as a man..Just promise me one thing...If you will ever change your mind, my house and my proposition will always be waiting fo you and Mrs Carson..”

“Thank you My Lord. We will remember that..”

“One more last thing and I will let you go back to your lovely wife...I know you bought a cottage from Mr and Mrs Hamilton.”

“Yes we have. We just moved a while ago.”

“I heard about it and I contacted Mr and Mrs Hamilton regarding this matter.”

“Oh? Why is that My Lord?”

“I wanted to find out what price you paid for the cottage, not because I'm curious, but because I decided to give you a wedding gift. So, the sum that you spent to buy the cottage, is now reimbursed on your bank account.”

“My Lord! I can't accept that kind of gift, it's too much...Besides, when you made that decision you assumed, that I will move back to Downton and hence I didn't..”

“It doesn't matter Carson...Please, let me give you this gift. I'm the reason you had to made this purchase. If it wasn't for my silly stubborness, you would both be still living in Downton..”

“But my Lord, are you sure about that...?”

“Yes. May that be a beginning of the new, great chapter of your life, just remember Carson, that marriage is not a picnic.”

“I believe you are right My Lord, but with a woman like my Elsie, I feel that every day will be a new, wonderful adventure...”

“I hope so. Wish you the best of luck in your new life...”

“Thank you very much My Lord. For everything...”

“No. Thank you...And remember...Whenever you are ready to go back, we will be waiting...”

After the party, Charles and Elsie slowly went back to their coattage. Happiness were radiating from both of them. Charles told Elsie about the proosal and the gift and she was astouned, double astound-by Charles's decision and by His Lordship gesture.  
When they arrived back to the cottage, lit a fire in the fireplace and sat on the window sill, looking at the lovely dusk landscapes outside the window, they still couldn't get out of an awe, how one decision lead to to the place in which they were now. Like a domino effect...

“Just think Charlie...If it wasn't for my famous, Scottish stubborness, we would be still living in Downton, doing exactly what we were doing for the last twenty years and nothing would have change...”

“That's why I thank God for your stubborness. It lead us to this happy place...Oh Elsie...I wouldn't change it for a million years in Downton...I much rather be here with you...I'm so glad we made that choice...I love you..”

“I love you too Charlie...So very much...You see, life is the art of choice and we made that choice and it's the best solution of all..”

They looked each other in the eyes, kissed delicately and they stay embraced, thinking about their life choices and the wonderful things that were ahead of them...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all for this story...I was initially leaning towards them coming back to Downton, but now I see that the other solution was better...There is life outside Downton after all ;-) The gate is still open, if they ever wanted to go back.  
>  I want to thank you for being with me and the story, I was planning it as a short story, but...As usual...The result was different...Sorry for any mistakes. If you liked the ending, please let me know. Stay safe and see you soon!

**Author's Note:**

> That's all for today my lovelies. That was just an introduction, rather long one, I suppose, but that's me. When I start to write, I never know when to stop ;-) On the next chapter, Elsie and Charles will cross the line of their closeness, on one stormy night...Will this push Charles to making a decision...? If you are curious, you need to stick with me and the story ;-) I will definitely update tomorrow. Sorry for any mistakes and let me know if this story seems at least a little interesting to you so far. Stay safe! See you soon!


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